Chief Minister’s breakfast scheme for schools gets interrupted in Karimnagar

Karimnagar: The Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme, launched late last year by the previous government, has been stopped in several government schools in the district. Mid-day meals agencies, which were authorized to serve breakfast to students, have stopped it, reportedly due to financial burdens.

In order to provide nutritious breakfast to students studying in government schools from Class I to X, the previous BRS government had launched the breakfast scheme in select schools across the State on October 7. The main objective of the scheme was to provide nutritious food to government school students so that they can focus on studies and achieve their full potential. It also aims to reduce the burden on working mothers.

The menu for breakfast includes idli sambar, wheat rava, upma chutney, puri, aaloo khorma, tomato bath, khichdi and pongal. Initially, breakfast facility was provided to 23 lakh students studying in 67,147 government schools across the State. It was decided to expand it to all schools later.

The mid-day meals agencies engaged in the preparation of food for mid-day meals programme were given the responsibility to serve breakfast as well to students.

Though the scheme was implemented perfectly initially, troubles began later on. Mid-day meals agencies have stopped preparing and serving breakfast as they were not getting their bills paid during the last few months. Agencies have also stopped serving eggs for the mid-day meals in the wake of a hike in the price of eggs.

Speaking to Telangana Today, Mid-Day Meals Workers Association district president Burra Manjula said that unable to bear the financial burden, they had stopped breakfast from December 19. They were facing severe hardships to serve at least proper meals to students since the bills were pending during the last five months. How could they then serve breakfast, she asked.

PRTU district president Musku Thirupathi Reddy said breakfast was not being served to students in almost all schools. Though it was beneficial to students, how could it be given without funds, he asked.