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Bhubaneswar, Nov 15: As many as 14,737 schools in the state’s urban areas and block headquarters will soon get Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) connections for the Midday Meal scheme in the second phase of the project.
Officials of the school and mass education department said Rs 9.85 crore has been sanctioned through the district education officers for LPG connections at the schools chosen on the basis of their enrolment figures and locations. In the first phase of the project run on a pilot basis, Rs 8.44 crore was sanctioned in January for providing LPG connections to 5,260 selected schools. By the time the second phase of the ambitious project is completed, 19,997 schools out of a total 62,000 in the state would be covered under the LPG scheme
“Funds to install LPG connections at the schools have been released. We are now looking at the third phase of implementation of the project, for which the district collectors have been asked to send the list of schools directly to the LPG-providing companies,” said an official of the school and mass education department.
To ensure safety and security measures, the state government has decided to provide fire-proof aprons and handy fire extinguishers to the schools. The money to procure these items will be handed to the headmasters and the items will be procured from the gas companies, said the official.
“The cooks and other staff engaged in the midday meal preparation process will be given hands-on and hands-off training to use the gas chullahs and cylinders, and they will be apprised of the risks involved and protection measures. The schools have also been asked to display on signboards with bold lettering that they are using LPG for MDM,” said the official.