Union HRD minister Smriti Irani. Union HRD minister Smriti Irani.

The ruling BJP faced an embarrassing moment during question hour in the Lok Sabha when a party member claimed that poisonous food was being served to school students under the midday meal scheme.

Ravindra Kumar Pandey, who represents Giridih in Jharkhand, alleged 2,375 children had fallen sick between 2011 and 2014 due to poor-quality food served in schools. “This data is with the government,” he said, adding contractors were also supplying packed food past the expiry date. He also alleged that teachers supposed to oversee the preparation of meals spent half their time doing this work.

This got Human Resources Development Minister Smriti Irani worked up. “It would be wrong to state in this House that the children were being served poisonous food under the midday meal scheme in the country.” She pointed out that the programme was being monitored by both the central and state governments and reminded members that the she had written to MPs in 2014 that they can personally check the quality of food for schools in their constituencies.

While acknowledging there have been some complaints about the midday meal, she said state governments act whenever such cases occur. Guidelines for states have been formulated after consultation with the ministries of food and health as well as Nutritional Management Institutes, she said. She underlined the fact that there was a Supreme Court order that the midday meal had “to be a hot-cooked and dabba meal as the member is saying.”

Earlier, the minister informed the House that of the 190 complaints received during the last three years and the current year, 75 pertained to poor quality of meals, especially relating to aspects of food safety. She said action taken by the state governments includes criminal cases, termination or suspension or transfer of those found responsible besides preventive measures. She said after the introduction of midday meal scheme in 1995, initially the enrolment of children in government and government-aided schools had increased. However, in recent years, enrolment rates have stabilised or dipped as birth rates are stabilising in several states of the country, she said. The minister said the programme was designed to address school time hunger.

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