Senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Shanta Kumar advised Centre to review the mid-day meal programme in schools so that the incident that happened in Chhapra (Bihar) was not repeated.
Addressing mediapersons here at Palampur, Shanta Kumar said the mid-day meal programme needed complete overhauling as most of the schools in the country had no infrastructure such as storage for foodgrains, kitchen and cooking staff.
BJP veteran leader said that after the introduction of the food security plan in the country, about 70 per cent families would benefit, thereafter there would be no justification of mid-day meals in the schools. He suggested that in lieu of mid-day meal, the government could provide biscuits and other items with high proteins to the students in the schools which were easily available in the country.
Shanta Kumar said the government was spending about Rs 13,125 crore on mid-day meal programme every year. He added that Govt had already admitted that there was rampant corruption in the mid-day meal programme and the funds allocated were not properly utilised. The Centre should take early measures to streamline the system to save the hard-earned money of tax payers.
