TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: The government is likely to implement the restructured mid-day meal scheme from the New Year onwards with Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar saying that the government is ready to pour in more money for mid-day meals in addition to what is being given now; but only if the children are satisfied with the quality of meals provided.
At present, mid-day meal is provided to about 1,65,000 students in the State and children are supposed to be served shira, vegetable pulao and pao bhaji. However, the scheme has faced some problems with a few children falling sick and complaints pouring in from various quarters about the quality of food.
Parrikar, along with the officials of the Education Department and Goa Education Development Corporation met all the 130 self-help groups that have registered with the Department of Education to supply mid-day meals to the students from Standard I to VIII across the State.
Appealing to the self-help groups to keep children as their main focus, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar assured all support to the self-help groups. “Self-help groups will not be sidelined even if the government plans to engage Iskcon-run Akshay Patra to supply the mid-day meals,” he said adding that fruits which will be given to the children on one of the days, will be through self-help groups only. The department has also warned of strict action if complaints are there against the self-help groups.
The Education Department alongwith Goa Education Development Council has re-structured the mid-day meal scheme. The self-help groups have been divided at panchayat and municipal level with which each group will now be able to provide meals to about 800 to 1,000 students. The menu has been reworked by the College of Home Science. Pav-bhaji will be provided on three days, usal on two days, while fruits on one day. Besides, Food and Drugs inspectors will be appointed at taluka-level to inspect the kitchens and the meals being cooked. The quality certificate for the meals will have to be signed by the head of the educational institution which has to be countersigned by the PTA and only then the payment to the self-help groups will be released by the department. Besides, the government is also working on a mechanism that will help in releasing the payment to the self-help groups fast.
According to the mid-day meal scheme, hot cooked food is provided to children of all Government and Government-aided primary and upper primary school and AIE centers.
Each Taluka is divided into a cluster of 15-20 schools with a strength of around 500 to 1,500 students. The rice and wheat required for the mid-day meal scheme is allotted by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, New Delhi. The quality as well as quantity of rice and wheat is properly checked by the State Nodal Officer. The government has also constituted Steering and Monitoring Committees at State/District/Block/ school level to monitor the scheme.
