Port Blair, June 21: The Lt Governor, Lt Gen (Retd) Bhopinder Singh, PVSM, AVSM has approved the enhancement in the rate of mid-day meal served to the students enrolled in all the Administration,  Local Body and Administration Aided Schools of the Islands. Accordingly, the UT share on the component of cooking cost has been enhanced from Rs 4/- to Rs 6/- per child per day under the scheme during the academic session 2013-2014. The increase in the cost of mid-day meal share will improve quality of the mid-day meals to the children.

The enhancement in the cooking cost of mid-day meal from Rs 4/- to Rs 6/-has been done in view of the present market rate of commodities. Under the scheme, about 38732 school children of the Islands are covered and an additional amount of Rs one crore seventy lakhs will be incurred on enhancement of cooking cost during the current academic session 2013-2014. The expenditure on account of mid-day meal is shared between MHRD and the State/UT’s on 75:25 percent basis. 

The National Programme of mid-day meal in schools is the most popular school feeding programme in the country. The key objective of the programme is to protect children from class room hunger, increasing school enrollment, attendance and improving nutritional levels among children studying in Administration, Local Body and Administration Aided schools functioning across the Islands.