32 lakh students to receive mid-day meal cost in bank accounts in Jharkhand

Under the mid-day meal programme in Jharkhand, 32 lakh students will receive their mid-day meal cost in their bank accounts. Of them, 10 lakh children do not have a bank account. Now the local administration has directed banks to put up a camp to speed up the process for opening the bank accounts of the students.

Ranchi: Authorities have directed banks to speed up process of opening bank accounts of student beneficiaries of the mid-day meal programme. The Union Education Ministry has also allocated Rs 145 crore for the mid-day meal of 32 lakh students in Jharkhand for the financial year 2021-22. Only 7 lakh children had benefited from the scheme and around 10 lakh children do not have a bank account.

Now the local administration has directed banks to put up a camp to speed up the process for opening the bank accounts of the students. Children studying in government schools of the state from class I to VIII will be offered help so that they don't face any food shortage at their homes because physical classes will remain suspended due surge in Covid 19 cases. For this, the amount has also been made available to the districts in December 2021 on behalf of the Jharkhand State Mid Day Meal Authority.

Arvind Vijay Billung, Deputy Director of Education, South Chotanagpur Division, said that so far, bank accounts of 2 lakh children have been opened in camps and the amount is also being transferred. During the third wave by any means mid-day meals will be made available to children.

During the Covid-induced lockdown and closure of schools, the state government was directed to send the cooking costs of mid-day meals to the accounts of eligible beneficiaries in the form of direct benefit transfer.

As per rules, It is mandatory to provide the food and cooking cost for 134 days from October 2020 to March 31, 2021, to the children and for this, Rs 665.98 are to be given to children from class I to V and Rs 998.30 for class VI to IX.