Odisha Teacher Suspended For Taking A Nap, Asking Students To Massage

Angul: A teacher of a government school was suspended after a team of officials reportedly caught him taking a nap with some students massaging his legs in a classroom in Odisha’s Angul district.

Maheswar Mishra, an assistant teacher at Saradhapur Upper Primary School in Angul block, was placed under suspension by Block Education Officer (BEO) Lopamudra Patnaik for gross misconduct, reports said on Monday.

The action was also taken against the headmaster of the school and another assistant teacher and their salaries were withheld for gross negligence of duty. The two have been issued a show-cause notice.

Sources said a team of officials from the block education office were on a visit to the school for inspection when they found Mishra sleeping during class hours with a towel on his face and trousers rolled up to the thighs. Around half-a-dozen students of Class I and II were seen massaging his legs.

This apart, the inspection team found the headmaster absent and he was stated to have gone out, while the other assistant teacher was caught loitering outside.

Of the four teaching staff deployed in the school, only a woman teacher was found taking classes. Based on the report given by the inspection team, Mishra was suspended, while salaries of the headmaster and the assistant teacher have been withheld, sources added.