GUWAHATI: Students in more than 1,800 primary and upper primary schools across Kolkata are set to receive a revised menu under the PM POSHAN (midday meal) programme, with eggs likely to be removed and replaced by vegetarian sources of protein.
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The change forms part of a new initiative announced by the West Bengal government in its budget, which also increases the material cost of midday meals in primary schools from Rs 6.78 to Rs 10 per student. The revised programme is expected to benefit around one lakh students up to Class VIII.
As part of the new arrangement, the responsibility for preparing and serving meals has been entrusted to ISKCON. The organisation is expected to begin operations within the next one to two months after setting up the required kitchen and logistics infrastructure in the city.
ISKCON officials speaking to the media said, the new menu will be entirely vegetarian and will rely on alternatives such as soya chunks, rajma, paneer, beans, lentils and pulses to meet students' nutritional requirements. The organisation said dietitians have been consulted to ensure the meals provide adequate protein and other essential nutrients.
The move has, however, sparked debate among educators and political leaders. Some teachers have expressed concerns over the removal of eggs, citing their popularity among students and their contribution to school attendance. One of the headmasters of a Primary School in Maheshtala, noted that attendance was often higher on days when eggs were served and said children generally preferred them over vegetarian alternatives.
The initiative has also drawn criticism from the opposition. According to the media reports, Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien alleged that the decision amounted to imposing vegetarianism through the school meal programme and questioned the removal of eggs from students’ diets. State School Education Minister Dipak Burman defended the revised menu, stating that a well-planned vegetarian diet can adequately meet nutritional needs and is followed by millions of people worldwide.
The proposed changes have triggered a wider discussion on balancing nutritional goals, student preferences and the implementation of one of the country's largest school meal programmes.
