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| SSA tots eat, NDM students remain high and dry | | | Syed Tahir Bukhari
BANDIPORA, Oct 24: The children from the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) schools were ensured food on all working days but MDM is being given only for limited period of time in a month and at the same time the financing pattern of the scheme is so ridiculous that the money is released after every 3 months to the concerned teacher, and all this the teacher has to manage all the expenses from his own pocket in Bandipora district of North Kashmir.
According to sources that the scheme is not being run properly in the district as the MDM has lost its efficacy because of the nature of its functioning. The scheme needs to be reformed again.
"The disruption in Mid Day Meals (MDM) occurred during the floods in Jammu and Kashmir was primarily due to the non-availability of food grains in schools. This indicates that the state government has not made any serious effort in providing food grains well in advance to schools so that buffer stock at school level could be maintained to ensure that MDM is provided regularly without any break sources said.
However a group of teachers from various places of the district who wished not to be named said that the main aim of the scheme was to reduce the drop outs from the schools but the scheme is not doing well to retain them in schools as well.'' they said.
A group of teachers told Early Times that the stock supply of the MDM is not kept available on the frequent basis like it is adopted in the integrated child Development Centers (ICDC). In order to go for the fight against the malnutrition the MDM has to be reformed on the large scale.
Local residents of Argam Bandipora say that the LKG and UKG children have not brought under its ambit. The scheme only takes in account the children from the Ist primary up to the 8th standard, Leaving the Kindergarten students from its preview is a sheer disgrace with the aim of the food security promises.
Since there has been disruption of MDM due to lack of food grains it is important that State Government should maintain a buffer stock of food grains for almost four months in each school to ensure that MDM is provided smoothly in all schools throughout the year. For this, the schools would be required to be provided with storage bins that can reserve food grains for almost four months, says Sayed Ahmad a parent. The irony is that in Kashmir especially, hundreds of schools are located in rental buildings (provided a meager amount), and therefore, the state government doesn't provide them with Kitchen shed. These schools don't have adequate space available to prepare meal in hygienic conditions. Therefore, as the number of schools in rental buildings is huge, state government must carve out a way for rental buildings to ensure that meals are provided hygienic. |
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