State to induct midday meal volunteers to ensure proper food supply in schools

The state government has taken an initiative to induct midday meal volunteers, who would ensure that food items sent by the state government to schools for midday meals, reaches the intended beneficiaries.

Partha Chatterjee, the state Education minister, said: "Following the direction of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, a new initiative has been launched to engage midday meal volunteers."

The main task of the volunteers would be to keep a watch and ensure that the food items allocated by the state government reaches the beneficiaries. Each of the volunteers would be responsible for keeping track of the situation in a certain number of schools in an area. They will also be filing reports to the concerned authority.

With volunteers keeping tabs on schools on a daily basis, the children will get the proper food that the government had allocated for them and stringent steps will be taken if the volunteers find that the task has not been properly executed.

Chatterjee said he has received complaints that rice and eggs sent for midday meals are not reaching the students.

The volunteers will be visiting the schools and will make sure that midday meals are served to the students in proper quantity and quality.

There have been allegations that the rice sent to schools by the government for midday meals is not being given to the students. Some food items allocated to schools under the scheme also get sold in the market or are replaced with inferior quality products.

While speaking on this topic earlier, Chatterjee had attacked the Left Front, alleging that they had turned the schools into party offices during their 34 years in power. According to the Education

minister, nothing constructive took place during those years, apart from the circulation of CPI(M)'s mouthpiece 'Ganashakti', as teachers used to keep themselves busy knitting sweaters.

The state government had also asked the District Magistrates to visit schools to check whether midday meals are served to students in proper quantity and quality.