Odisha Government adjusts mid-day meal costs to address inflation impact

Bhubaneswar, Aug 21: The Odisha government has announced an increase in the cost of the mid-day meal (MDM) for school students due to a significant rise in essential commodity prices. On Wednesday, School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond revealed that the cost per mid-day meal will be raised by Rs 1. This adjustment aims to help schools maintain nutritional standards amid rising costs.

Minister Gond noted that schools are struggling to meet the government's nutritional guidelines due to escalating prices. Currently, the expenditure for the MDM is Rs 5.90 for primary students and Rs 8.82 for upper primary students. The last cost adjustment occurred in October 2022, and the new increase will be implemented to better support meal provisions.

According to the PM-POSHAN database for Odisha, more than 45 lakh students across 50,485 primary and upper primary schools receive cooked meals. The meals include rice with ‘dalma’ on Mondays and Thursdays, soya bean curry on Tuesdays and Fridays, and egg curry on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Primary students (Classes I to V) receive 25 grams of dal, while upper primary students (Classes VI to VIII) get 30 grams. Soya beans are served as 12 grams for primary students and 25 grams for upper primary students, along with one egg per student.

Teachers have reported having to purchase lower-quality ingredients to manage costs, and many have requested a more substantial increase in the MDM cost.