Goa is worst performer under the Mid Day Meal Scheme for school children (POSHAN) of Government of India.
Ram-Bharosey imlementation, does not pay for 6 months to SHG. Only 6% schools take the feedback on quality of food provided. Chief Minister & Education Minister Pramod Sawant sleeping on the desk.
The Mid-Day Meal Scheme in India is a program that aims to provide nutritious meals to school children across the country. The scheme has its roots in various initiatives taken by state governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) before it was implemented at the national level.
Under this scheme, a mid-day meal with 450 calories and 12 g of protein for every child at primary level and 700 calories and 20 g of protein at upper primary level.
One of them was Pondicherry then, under French colonial control. These initiatives were mostly localized and driven by local communities, philanthropists, and organizations.
One of the earliest and well-known models of providing mid-day meals was effectively implemented in the state of Tamil Nadu in the 1980s. The scheme, known as the "Mid-Day Meal Programme" was launched by the state government to address malnutrition and encourage school attendance.
In 1995, the Government of India launched the National Program of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (NP-NSPE), which provided cooked meals to children in government and government-aided primary schools across the country.
In 2001, the program was renamed as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDMS) and extended to upper primary schools. In November 2001, the Supreme Court of India issued a landmark order making the provision of cooked meals to children in primary schools a legal entitlement.
In Goa, on 2nd of June 2023; the Self-Help Groups(more than 100) who have been engaged in providing mid-day meals to almost 1.5 Lac children in the state; threatened to stop their services from 1st July 2023; unless their dues pending for more than 6 months were cleared.Rs.13 Crores of total dues are pending.
Instead of working towards clearing the pending dues to the SHGs, Government of Goa has floated a tender inviting NGOs from all across India, for implementing and executing the scheme in Goa. Surely, this means that once the new entity is up and running, the SHG and PTA involved in the operation, would be shown the door.
While the Mid-Day meal scheme model as implemented in the state of Goa, is supposed to run on "No Profit" basis for the organisation involved; it generates livelihood for thousands of people directly and indirectly involved in the operation. Majority of them are women and people from low-income strata who do not have alternate employment opportunities available. These include Cooks,Server,Drivers and porters etc.
While the Chief Minister talks grandiose about "Swayampurna Goa"; the fact is that, slowly the aboriginals are being discarded, to make way for crony capitalism; at every step in the governance.
Is the way towards "Swayampurna Goa" means doing away with local people involved; and bringing in corporatised entities?The number of employment opportunities available for lower income strata of Goa is as it is scarce;while some enterprising ones try to sustain themselves through opportunities like "Mid-Meal Scheme"; those are also being snatched away.
While there has not been any reason given by State Government and Chief Minister, who is incidentally also, the Education Minister; the blame is being put on SHG; because they demanded their pending dues.
How these people are supposed to sustain and continue operations, when their dues have been pending since last 6 months, which is not an exceptional occurrence, but happens regularly?
Most of them, have take loans and pawned their Gold, in order to sustain operation.If this is the way, the operations are being carried out, it puts a huge question mark on the quality of meal which could be served to the children in school, as the operations have to run, barely on hand-to-mouth basis, close to begging.
Ironically, when the problem is non-payment of dues by the government on timely basis; how can bringing in an institutionalized player or a bigger NGO like Akshay Patra or for that matter any Tom/Dick/Harry, would solve the problem? Is it because, they could sustain themselves for a longer period of time, without being paid?
Or when dealing with single entity, it is much more easier for Government officials and Minister, to demand their pound of flesh, in return of prompt payment?
Well, going by the way, this has unfolded, it seems both the above points are possible and plausible.
While way much lager states like TamilNadu has shown the way, how to implement, the most important scheme in the schooling system in India.Owning it end-to-end, completely.
Even small Union Territories own it and prove that they care for their Children and Education system. In Puducherry; 67,400 students from Standard I to XII are provided Mid-Day Meals.
Where, the Governments and administrations know the importance of Mid-Day meal scheme for not only child development but also in state development; they have completely owned the important exercise; including UT like Puducherry; while in Goa it remains as a lip-service, even when Government has to do nothing, except make the payment on time, to those involved in operations.
In fact no one knows about the efficacy of entire exercise or the quality of food served in Government of Goa or Directorate of Education of Goa, as hardly any feedback is received by the government. Just 6% of schools are using Mid-Day Meal Feedback System, which means Directorate of Education of Government of Goa, is least bothered about the exercise and the money spent on it. And thus, whether any benefit is accrued to the children or not.
It is being claimed that 1.5 Lac students in Goa avail the benefits of Miday Meal Scheme, while the population of Goa itself is just north of 16 Lac, according to 2011 Census.
At Rs.10/student/academic day; this figures translates to Rs.15 Lac/day.
Comptroller and Auditor General of India had in the past raised the issue of exaggeration in the Mid-Day Meal figures; and going by the fact that, SHG take loans and pawn Gold to keep afloat their operations in spite of not being paid for 6 months,raises some eyebrows.
It is appalling to say the least that, State Government of Goa is trumpeting the inauguration of Alll India Institute of Ayurvedic Medicine and Indian Institute of Technology Goa, in which it has virtually no hand to play while it cannot implement effectively the Mid-Day meal scheme, when all it has to do, is to release the payment on time.