Team Herald
PANJIM: Ahead of reopening of schools for the second term from next week, the State government has decided to hike the allocation of funds under Mid-Day Meal scheme for the self-help groups (SHGs), on condition that there should be no compromise on quality of food supply to students.
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The mid-day meal suppliers from five talukas — Mormugao, Ponda, Salcete, Tiswadi and Pernem — had threatened to stop the supply of cooked food to nearly 1.60 lakh students if government fails to hike the rates and clear pending dues before classes resume.
Speaking to mediapersons on Tuesday, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said the government has decided to increase the cost by Rs 1.90 per child per day, as requested. “But, the hike will be applicable provided the SHG assures that there will be no compromise on quality of food,” he said.
Sawant, who is also Education Minister, said there have been complaints that at some schools, the quality of food supplied to students is not as per government norms. “I am clear that at some places no good meal is provided to the students….it should not be that only 50 per cent of students eat the meal,” he said.
Currently, the average unit cost per child per day is Rs 6.11 for pre-primary and primary students while for upper primary it’s Rs 7.45.
Following media reports, the Goa State Commission for Protection of Child Rights had issued notice to the Directorate of Education (DoE) directing to come out with an “early solution” to the mid-day meal crisis.
The DoE had last month altered the mid-day meal menu with the elimination of refined flour or maida. New dishes such as mixed vegetable idlis and mix vegetable pulao, chole chapatti, vegetarian kurma and potato bhaji were added. The mid-day meal suppliers said the present rates are not sufficient to replace the Goan bread (pao) with chapattis and idlis.
