Bengaluru: The BJP government in Karnataka has introduced eggs in the midday meal scheme, meant for school children, despite opposition from religious leaders and a sentiment against such a move in other states ruled by the party.
The government, however, has rolled out the scheme partially in seven districts, which according to the National Family Health Survey were reporting high malnutrition and anaemia levels among children.
Launched Wednesday, the scheme will continue until 30 March in government and aided schools of Bidar, Raichur, Kalaburgi, Yadgir, Koppal, Ballari and Vijayapura.
With this, Karnataka has joined the likes of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha as states that have included eggs in the midday meal scheme.
The move comes after multiple attempts to introduce eggs by several governments had failed in Karnataka. The last big addition to midday meals in the state was in 2013-2014 when hot milk was introduced.
For students who do not consume eggs, the government has decided to distribute bananas.
“From December 1, 2021 to March 30, 2022, 14,44,322 students in government and aided schools in seven districts will be given eggs or bananas for those who don’t consume eggs. Students in classes 1 to 8 will receive 12 eggs/ bananas in a month on school days at a cost of Rs 6 per each egg or banana,” a circular from the Primary and Secondary Education Department said.
The estimated cost for the inclusion is Rs 3,953.14 lakh but will cover only 46 of the 101 school days. Around sixty per cent of the cost is being borne by the Union government, under its flexifund allocation, while the state government’s Education Department is pitching in with the rest of the amount.
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Opposition from religious leaders
Before unveiling the scheme, the state’s department of public instruction had carried out a registration process and sought clearance from parents of students who desired to get eggs as part of their midday meal.
Despite an estimated 80 per cent students registering for eggs, various Lingayat outfits, such as the Rashtriya Basava Dal, opposed the move.
Channabasavananda Swamiji of the Lingayata Dharma Mahasabha, Sadguru Maate Satyadevi among other Lingayat seers had requested the government to stall the programme.
Incidentally, the seven districts where eggs have been included as part of midday meal have a sizable Lingayat population.
The government, however, has decided to stick with its decision.
“There may be opposition but as a government, our priority is to ensure children get enough nutrition. The union government too has pushed for eggs to be made part of midday meal considering anaemia and malnutrition prevalence in children of these seven districts,” B.C. Nagesh, Primary and Secondary Education Minister of Karnataka, told ThePrint.
He added that while there is no proposal to consider extending the programme to other districts, the government will take it up on a need basis.
“All our programmes are on a need basis. We introduced milk because it needed to be and now we have introduced eggs because the children need it,” he added. “Banana may not be as nutritious as an egg but it will provide some nutrients. We will extend the programme to other districts if there is a need.”
Officials from the public instruction department are consulting experts for a vegetarian alternative but bananas will continue to be provided until an agreement is reached, according to the department.
Public health experts and nutrition activists, while welcoming the move, have asked the government to extend the provision to all government schools.
“Rich vegetarians can afford nutritious alternatives like paneer, dry fruits, ghee, butter, fruits but the vegetarian food choices imposed on the poor are woefully short of nutrients. Children who study at government schools hail from extremely poor families,” Dr Sylvia Karpagam, a public health expert told ThePrint. “Eggs, considering that majority of the children in government schools come from families who consume meat, provide nutrition to children who often are victims of stunted growth, ill-health due to lack of nutritious food.”
Dr Karpagam is part of a group of 13 organisations and 53 individuals from various walks of life who have drafted an open letter, which is likely to be released next week, to the Karnataka government demanding eggs for children of all government and aided schools and on all school days.
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