As many as 34 children were rescued from an illegally run orphanage at Saringiripi in Kandhamal district, an official said today.
"The authorities could not produce any valid document for running the home during a raid yesterday," District Social Welfare Officer (Kandhamal) Sanghamitra Mohapatra said.
The children, aged between 6 and 14 years, were living in unhygienic conditions, she said, adding the quality of food served to them was also not good.
The children, all from Daringbadi, were studying in a nearby school. "They have been sent to a home at Baliguda," she said.