Delhi: Mid-day meals to resume at govt, MCD schools from April 1

When schools closed with the onset of the Covid pandemic in early March 2020, the midday meal scheme came to a halt. Even though schools opened for primary and upper primary grades for a short while in November 2021, and have been open since February 14 this year, cooked meals in schools had not resumed. Education department authorities had stated that it was not feasible to do so when schools were operating in a staggered manner with all students not attending on any given day, and with optional physical attendance.

However, from April 1, all schools in Delhi are set to move back to the offline mode completely with the option of online school being done away with. With this, the Mid Day Meal branch of the Directorate of Education has notified all government and municipal corporation schools as well as officials that it has been decided to resume hot cooked meals for all primary and upper primary students from April 1.

Heads of schools and empanelled NGOs have also been instructed to “ensure that all Covid protocols and social distancing norms” are followed during the distribution of the meals.

The government has been distributing dry ration – amounting to 145 grams per day for children up to class V and 217 grams per day for classes VI to VIII – in the place of cooked midday meals since December 2020. They were given ration for a period of six months from July to December 2020, and monthly starting from January 2021. This was being claimed by parents by reporting to their children’s schools.

The Ministry of Education’s Department of School Education and Literacy had written to states and union territories in November 2021, advising them to resume provision of hot cooked meals to eligible students but Delhi had continued with dry ration distribution citing logistical difficulties.