A college girl who was denied permission to cycle through a neighbouring village to reach college has been given a security officer so that she travels without hassle.
A lady sub-inspector accompanied Mamata Nayak for the first time as she cycled to college, about 7 km from her village, on Monday.
The dalit girl's story had rocked the state after she alleged that residents of Nanput village under Khandagiri police station Bhubaneshwar had objected to her cycling through the village.
The residents had called a meeting where Mamata's father, who belonged to the neighbouring Narasinghapur hamlet, was warned not to allow his daughter to pedal along the village road.
Mamata, the first girl from her village to pass matriculation, was so crestfallen that she stopped going to college for two days. She resumed attending her classes, but after nearing Nanput she would walk with her cycle and ride it only after crossing the village.