A headmaster in Maharashtra’s Beed, who didn’t want to be named, said supplies of foodgrains and pulses have been coming in, but school heads have been paying for cooking fuel and vegetables since June 15.
In Maharashtra, the funding delay comes at a time of severe drought , across 70% of the state. A headmaster in Beed, who didn’t want to be named, said supplies of foodgrains and pulses have been coming in, but school heads have been paying for cooking fuel and vegetables since June 15. Vijay Kombe, a headmaster in Wardha, said: “For students in classes 1 to 5, the amount given is Rs 2.59 per student and for students in classes 6 to 8, it is Rs 3.71 per head. I pay around Rs 3000 per month to buy fuel and vegetables for 125 students in my school.
Because the funds are their only source of income, “But what is worse is the condition of our cooks. Because the administration warns them of court action, “The school heads don’t raise their voice. Because parents come from extremely poor backgrounds,” Kombe said, we cannot put the entire responsibility on the school management committee.
“You need more than just cauliflower or potatoes to make the meals,” he said. The headmaster said if he had not paid for food supplies, children would’ve dropped out of school. But the govt’s handling of the scheme has been apathetic to say the least, said Bhausaheb Chasker, a ZP teacher from Akole, Ahilyanagar. So the onus to keep the programme running is often pushed on the teachers and workers,” Chasker said. But headmasters TOI spoke to said reimbursements are often delayed. Another school official, requesting anonymity, said it was “laughable” that with the meagre amounts provided by the govt, headmasters were also expected to provide one additional nutritious item such as chikki, rajgira laddoo, apple or a banana every week.
Essentially, a school meal is now among the few sources of assured nutrition for tens of thousands of children as their parents struggle with falling farm incomes. “You need the smaller things too, like ginger, garlic and chilli, every day. The drought has forced households to limit food options. Most of our children are only having watery dal, chutney and onion with bhakri at home. So this one school meal is the only source of good nutrition they’re now getting. How will they live without money? The mid-day meal became one of the most important welfare schemes in the country after evidence showed it had increased school enrollments. In this day and age, is that enough to buy vegetables and fuel?