KENDRAPADA: Fourteen dalit children from Gahirapala project upper primary school in Jajpur district withdrew from the school to protest the removal of a dalit woman cook. All have obtained School Leaving Certificates (SLCs).

The cook was allegedly removed after upper caste students refused to have food cooked by her. "We decided not to send our children to the school as the village education committee removed the cook, Janaki Jena, at the behest of some upper caste persons," said Nabaghana Jena, a dalit villager.

District inspector (DI) of schools Laxmidhar Das, who visited the school on Wednesday, said the village education committee appointed Sabita Nayak, a non-dalit, as cook. This led dalit parents to withdraw their children from the school. I visited the school. I am trying to sort out the matter".

Admitting to the fact, headmaster Laxman Murmu said, "The village education committee appoints the cook and I have no role in this. I appealed to all parents and guardians of dalit students not to withdraw them from the school but to no avail."

Flaying the school committee's decision, human rights activist of Kendrapada Amarbar Biswal said, "The Supreme Court has directed that cooks belonging to the SC and ST communities should be given priority in the midday meal."

