- The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the revision of norms under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme.
- Mid-Day Meal Scheme is a centrally-sponsored Scheme that provides children studying in Classes I-VIII of government and government aided schools with cooked mid day meal. The key objectives of the MDMS is to a) improve the nutritional status of children and b) improve enrolment, attendance and retention rates in schools and EGS/AIE centres ( Alternative and Innovative Education Centers )
- The recent revisions in MDMS include a) Rs. 10,000 per kitchen for repair of more than 10-year-old kitchens- this is a new component introduced to help maintenance and upkeep of kitchens. b) Allocation of Rs. 50 crore for fortification of food items in a systematic manner to address problems of micronutrient deficiencies, c) increase in cooking cost to offset the impact of inflation on the food items under the scheme, d) encouraging kitchen gardens in schools, e) Encourage concept of community participation in the form of Tithi Bhojan, f) cooking competitions to help innovate menus and g) monitoring of attendance through technology based Automated Monitoring System.
