Bilaspur: The poor quality of the mid-day meal served to school children from the Central Kitchen in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, has led to a significant decline in student participation.
Due to the substandard food, children have stopped taking the meals, and school staff and cooks are instead feeding the food to animals. As a result, during lunch hours, there are more stray cattle than children at the schools.
The matter has now caught the attention of the High Court, which has initiated a hearing based on a public interest litigation (PIL) following media reports. The Court has sought a response from the state government and the Collector, as well as an affidavit from the District Education Officer (DEO). The next hearing is scheduled for November 27.
A central kitchen was established to prepare the mid-day meals, which are contracted out by the Municipal Corporation. The kitchen supplies food to over 120 government and private schools in the area.
However, the quality of food has deteriorated in recent times, especially after education department officials ceased paying adequate attention to the issue. As a result, children have refused to eat the poor-quality food, and the cooks are now feeding it to the animals instead.
Previously, the meals were of better quality, but with the decline in food standards, stray dogs and cattle have started crowding the schools during lunch hours.
The High Court has expressed concern over the situation and has demanded an explanation from the concerned authorities regarding the chaos caused by the substandard meals.
