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A comprehensive overview of the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in India, highlighting its benefits in promoting school participation, preventing hunger, and fostering healthy growth in children. The scheme aims to improve the nutritional status of children and encourage regular school attendance, contributing to overall well-being and educational development.
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Mid Day Meal Scheme “Since Indian children suffer not only from educational neglect but also from under nourishment on a scale that makes India a world-beater in an unenviable role, the effectiveness of mid-day meals can be very large indeed, in jointly addressing several pivotal problems together.” - AmartyaSen(2005)
The Rationale • Promoting school participation • Not just enrolment, but also regular attendance • Preventing classroom hunger • Addressing the problem of children’s inability to concentrate • Facilitating healthy growth of children • Regular source of supplementary, not ‘substitute’ nutrition • Intrinsic educational value • Education on importance of clean water, sanitation, environment, • Fostering social and gender equality • Eating together; spreading egalitarian values; Eroding barriers that prevent girls from attending school • Psychological benefits • Physiological deprivation leads to low self-esteem, insecurity, stress; MDM can facilitate emotional, cognitive, social development
Objectives (i) Improving the nutritional status of children in classes I – VIII in Government, Local Body and Government aided schools, and EGS and AIE centres. (ii) Encouraging poor children, belonging to disadvantaged sections, to attend school more regularly and help them concentrate on classroom activities. (iii) Providing nutritional support to children of primary stage in drought-affected areas during summer vacation.
Target Group No. of Beneficiary students (in crores)
Convergence with NRHM • MDM Scheme seeks convergence through.. • Regular health check up • Supplementation of micro-nutrients and de-worming medicines. • MDM Guidelines stresses • 6 monthly dose for de-worming & Vit-A • Weekly administration of Iron, Folic Acid and Zinc • Use of iodized/double fortified salt for cooking. • Technical advise and close co-ordination with nearest PHC
GoI’s direction to State Education Dept. • Relevant School Health activities should get included in District Health Action Plans. Medical check up facilities should be provided at school itself. • Draw up and maintain a roster of school visits by Health officials for periodic health check ups of school children with wide publicity particularly to parents. • Availability/referral slips and regular updation of child’s health profile therein. • Provision of essential micro-nutrients and deworming medicines to children by health officials during periodic check ups.
GoI’s direction to State Education Dept. (contd ..,) • Training of teachers on issues relating to preventive and promotive health care. Technical inputs to be drawn from State Health Departments. • There is a need for activity based modules in the textbook curriculum of school children regarding the health issues like nutrition, hygiene maintenance and disposal of waste. • There is a need for training of teachers on health issues at induction level and in service on various health issues. Health Min can provide the technical inputs.
GoI’s direction to State Education Dept. (contd ..,) • Make available weighing machine/height recorder in each primary school using funds under MME. Height/weight to be recorded in health cards during health check ups. • School Health Programme activities/fund requirement to be incorporated in district health plans under NRHM.
