Sardarpur (Madhya Pradesh): The government’s failure to provide funds to groups preparing mid-day meals at government schools for past four months has put them in a severe financial crisis.
Due to the delay, the group responsible for providing mid-day meals is now taking goods from a local grocery shop on credit to feed approximately 2 lakh children daily in about 5,000 government primary and secondary schools.
The funds for April, June, July, and August are yet to be deposited into the bank accounts of these groups,which is leading to a significant financial strain.
Poonibai and Phoolkibai, leaders of a self-help group, said that they have been borrowing mid-day meal items from grocery stores for the last three months.
However, shopkeepers are now refusing to extend credit and demanding payment for goods borrowed for the past three months. She said that the shop owners are even visiting their homes to collect their dues.
The group will be unable to provide meals to the students if they do not receive funds from the government soon.
Arpita Billore, mid-day meal group in-charge in the district panchayat, said that they have requested Rs 600 crore from the government and are in constant communication to address the financial issue. She gave assurance that the funds would be deposited in the group's accounts as soon as they are received.
