Background – Behavioural problems in school going children are on a rise. Studies done in this field reveal that the prevalence of behavioural problems in children is alarmingly high. Our country, India, being a developing country has a huge population of more than a billion and out of which a significant proportion is comprised of school going children. This indicates a sizeable amount of disease burden on the society. Objectives – The study was carried out with an objective of assessing the prevalence of behavioural disorders in school going children in urban and rural areas of Bhubaneswar and to compare the outcome between the two. Method – A school based cross–sectional study was undertaken . 184 children in the age–group of 6 – 16 years were selected by appropriate randomization. Parent report version of the Child behaviour checklist was used. The data thus collected was analysed using appropriate statistical tests. Results and Interpretation – Out of the total sample size of 184 children, 65 children had CBCL scores on or above the cut–off, including both rural and urban areas. Thus, the overall prevalence rate of behavioural disorders in school going children of Bhubaneswar, was found to be 35.32 %. The prevalence of behavioural disorders in the urban schools was 42.11 % and in the rural schools it was 28.08%. The difference in the prevalence rates was found to be statistically significant. The mean CBCL score was found to be higher in urban school children in comparison to the rural school children which was statistically significant. Children in the age–group of 12–16 years had a statistically significantly higher mean CBCL score than the children in the age–group of 6–11 years in the urban school. On analysing the pattern of behavioural disorders, it was found that internalising problems were common than the externalising ones. Anxiety was found to be a very common problem in children. Conclusion – The number of school going children suffering from behavioural diorders in rural and urban areas of Bhubaneswar is very high. The prevalence is higher in the urban areas than in the rural areas. This difference can be attributed to the differences in their socio–cultural environments and family background. The study also emphasises on the need of periodic screening in children for behavioural disorders and establishment of school mental health services.