Balangir: Students of the Upper Primary School at Kandhabahali village in Turekela block of the district were found engaged in cleaning school toilets on Tuesday.

The matter came to light after an ex-student of the school, Makardhwaj Nag, 17, had video-graphed it and put the clip on social media which later went viral.

"I got to hear from the villagers that such practice had been going on in the school for long. So, I decided to make a video of it on the sly," said Nag.

A complaint was also lodged with the district education officer in this regard. As a result, Balangir district education officer Subodh Dash ordered an inquiry into the allegation.

The school, which has classes from I to VII, is located in an interior part of the district, and sources said that hardly any officials ever visited it. The students said they were often asked to clean the toilets, and they carry out the "order" of the headmaster. "We often clean the toilets as the headmaster asks us to do it. This is a regular practice in the school," said a student, who did not want to be named.

The school's headmaster Himanshu Sekhar Majhi has also admitted that the students are often asked to clean the toilets. He said: "We take up weekly cleaning of the school toilets, and the students do it. It is not done during the study time."

However, sources said that as the school did not have any Grade IV employee, the headmaster often engaged the students to do such chores. Sekhar said he did not force any student to get engaged in the job, and instead, they gave the service voluntarily.

Such practice in the school has also invited severe criticism from all quarters.

Ranjan Pradhan, a Balangir-based activist, said it was unfortunate that such practices were going on in a school. "This is deplorable. At a time when the state government is boasting of so much for the primary education, such act on part of the headmaster of a school is unacceptable," he said.

Pradhan said the parents sent their children to school for study. "And in the school, they end up cleaning toilets. The guilty teacher must be brought to book, and at the same time, strong action should be taken against him," he said.

The district education officer said he had taken the matter seriously and ordered an inquiry.

"Such things should not happen. Students are not supposed to do all these things. I have ordered an inquiry into it. Action will be taken if the teacher is found to be guilty," Dash said.