Opinion Chicken for children: West Bengal govt has done well to make its mid-day meal scheme protein rich

Several studies have shown that the Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDMS) has played a significant role in reducing malnutrition amongst children, besides increasing school enrolment. These studies have, however, also indicated that the scheme, rechristened PM Poshan in 2021, ought to have done more. In large parts of the country, the programme’s potency has been undermined by considerations — including identity politics and the myth that India is a vegetarian nation — that have little to do with providing children with adequate quantities of proteins, fats, and micronutrients. The West Bengal government’s decision, last week, to introduce chicken and seasonal fruits in the schools it runs is, therefore, a welcome initiative. The step could also address an urgent imperative. West Bengal is amongst the states that bucked the national trend by reporting an increase in “stunting” amongst children below the age of five in the National Family Health Survey-5. The state had brought down the proportion of children with this nutritional deficit-related problem from 45 per cent in 2005 to 32.5 per cent in 2016. But NFHS-5, 2021, reveals a reversal — 33.8 per cent children in the state under five have low height for weight.

On paper, the MDMS is supposed to provide primary school children with hot cooked meals that have 450 calories and at least 12 grams of protein. Students attending upper primary schools should obtain at least 700 calories and 20 grams of protein. However, several reports and surveys have revealed that state authorities do not always adhere to these guidelines. Cereals and millets constitute the largest part of the menu and protein-rich foods do not receive adequate importance. The inclusion of eggs in the MDMS has been a particularly contentious issue in several parts of the country. Currently only 13 states and three Union Territories provide eggs in the school meals. And by all accounts in most states, where this rich source of protein — and a widely acknowledged bulwark against malnutrition — figures in the MDMS menu, its frequency varies from every alternate day to once a week, even once a month.

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The MDMS schemes of several states have also been hobbled by fund constraints. The West Bengal government has said it has money to include chicken in the MDMS menu only till April. The state government has been criticised by the Opposition — the BJP, Congress, and CPM — for enhancing the scope of the scheme with an eye on the panchayat polls, scheduled in April-May. It must not whittle under pressure — financial or political — but continue with the new menu.