Malda: To make the cooks of mid-day meal (MDM) in various schools of Malda more skilled and aware of hygiene, the district administration is going to organise block-wise training programmes.
These trainees will also be registered under the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) following the successful completion of the training.
The certificates will help the cooks start their own enterprises in the future like food stalls or restaurants for which they can obtain the licenses.
Various agencies registered under the Utkarsha Bangla scheme of the state government will be in charge of providing the cooks with the training. More than 5000 cooks throughout the district will be enlisted for training.
The district administration has set a target of December 31 for completion of the training.
Baibhav Chaudhary, Additional District Magistrate (General) in-charge of Food safety, said: “The teams cooking mid-day meals in primary and high schools are to send selected representatives for training. Every block headquarters will be holding these training camps shortly.”
The government has given stress on hygiene while cooking mid-day meals in schools and to provide the students with nutritious meals. The cooks are also equipped with aprons, gloves, caps for the purpose.