Nishikant Khajuria
JAMMU, Oct 4: As the liabilities continue to pile up, the Mid-Day Meal scheme of providing nutritious food to children in Government run schools up to Middle standard, is facing closure in several zones of the Jammu division.
Because of non-clearance of bills since months together, the concerned teachers are learnt to have refused to continue the scheme with the result that thousands of students are either not getting the Mid-Day meal or being served occasion token meal, that too without containing proper nutritious items, official sources informed the Excelsior.
Notwithstanding the recent release of an adhoc installment of more than Rs 10 crores for Mid-Day meal purpose and payment to Food Corporation of India (FCI), liabilities of more than Rs 33 crores since September last are still pending, sources added.
Pertinent to mention here that in Jammu division only, there is 4.83 lac enrollment of students upto Middle standard, who are covered under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, which was launched by the Government of India in 1995. Main objective of the scheme is to improve the nutritional status of students in Government run schools besides encouraging children from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend school regularly. The scheme is funded by the Government of India and the State is required to contribute only ten percent of the Central share.
According to the sources, because of delay in submitting utilization certificate and non contribution of the State share by the previous Government, the Centre did not release the last year installment of funds, which resulted into multiplying the liabilities. Further, procedural wrangles at the Government level have also been contributing in the delay in distribution of Mid-Day Meal funds at the ground level. “Even as the funds under this scheme are sanctioned in advance by the Government of India, the same are kept withheld by the State Finance Department, which releases it to Education Department for further distribution at Directorate level, then CEO level and finally at ZEO level with the result that it takes months for the money to reach at ground level,” sources explained.
In absence of funds and because of procedural delays, the concerned teachers and staff members in the Government schools were managing the Mid-Day meal to students by availing credit from the school fund and shopkeepers. However, the situation worsened after the end of last financial year as funds for the scheme got lapsed due to dry treasuries in fag end of March.
Even as there is no official word on closure of the scheme in any corner of the State, sources listed a number of schools, even in the Jammu district, where no Mid-Day Meal was being served to the students due to non-availability of funds. “The higher authorities are well aware of the fact but we have been told to continue the scheme by managing on our own like we did in past, which is not possible now” said a Headmaster of Middle School in one of the zones in Jammu.
When contacted, Director School Education Jammu, Smita Sethi said that she had recently released Rs 10.57 crores as adhock installment and the money has been further disbursed among the ZEOs for Mid-Day Meal scheme, which was running smoothly in all the schools. The Director further informed that she had written to the higher authorities for re-validation of Rs 992.3 lakhs and Rs 2412.26 lakhs under different heads and once the amount is released, all liabilities on account of Mid-Day Meal would be cleared in the Jammu division.
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