Lok Sabha Question No. 4179 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-03-22
Subject: MDMS Expenses During Lockdown
Ministry: Education
Asked by: Diya Kumari

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY

## LOKSABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4179 TO BE ANSWERED ON 22.03.2021

## MDMSExpenses During Lockdown

## 4179. MS. DIYA KUMARI:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

- (a) the data on the expenditure incurred on Mid-day meals during the months of nationwide lockdown, district-wise;
- (b) the details of measures undertaken by the Government to ensure equitable distribution of meal kits or cooked meals to students;
- (c) whether the Government proposes to continue the supply of meal packages in place of cooked meals to registered students, especially girl students, until complete lockdown from schools is lifted; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF EDUCATION (SHRI RAMESH POKHRIYAL 'NISHANK')

- (a): Under Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDMS) the funds are being released to States and UTs on the basis of number of children and number of regular school working days. The States and UTs wise funds released during the year 2020-21 are given at Annexure.
- (b) to (d): Mid-Day Meal is the entitlement of a child, guaranteed under the National Food Security Act, 2013 and extant per day per child norms of hot cooked meal under MDMS are as under:

| Stage         | Foodgrain   | Cooking Cost   | Cooking Cost                                                           |
|---------------|-------------|----------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|               |             | Amount         | Items                                                                  |
| Primary       | 100 gms     | Rs. 4.97       | 20 gms pulse, 50 gms vegetables, 5 gm oil other condiments and fuel.   |
| Upper Primary | 150 gms     | Rs. 7.45       | 30 gms pulse, 75 gms vegetables, 7.5 gm oil other condiments and fuel. |

The calorific value of a mid-day meal for primary classes is 450 calories and 12 gram protein while for upper primary classes it is 700 calories and 20 grams of protein per child/school day.

In order to enable children to meet their nutritional requirement and safe guard their immunity during closure of schools due to COVID pandemic, Ministry of education issued an advisory to all States & UTs to provide hot cooked Mid Day Meal or Food Security Allowance, comprising of food grains and cooking cost to children in March, 2020. Requisite Central Assistance has been released and sufficient food grains have been allocated to all the States/UTs for this purpose.

Further in April, 2020 considering the onset of summer vacations, it was announced as a special one time measure that Food Security Allowance comprising of food grains and cooking cost (or its equivalent pulses, oil etc) will also be provided to eligible children even during summer vacations. In July, 2020 States and UTs have been advised to provide Food Security Allowance comprising of food grains and pulses, oil etc (equivalent to cooking cost) to all eligible children including girls students in lieu of hot cooked mid-day meal, duly following extant social distancing norms, until the schools are reopened.

*****

Annexure referred to in reply to part (a) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 4179 for 22.03.2021 raised by Ms. Diya Kumari, Hon'ble MP regarding MDMS Expenses During Lockdown

State/UT-wise funds released during the year 2020-21

(Rs. in lakh)

|   S.No. | States/UTs        |   Total Releases during 2020 - 21 |
|---------|-------------------|-----------------------------------|
|       1 | Andhra Pradesh    |                          37510.2  |
|       2 | Arunachal Pradesh |                           1251.78 |
|       3 | Assam             |                          38817.2  |
|       4 | Bihar             |                         132705    |
|       5 | Chhattisgarh      |                          38080.9  |
|       6 | Goa               |                           1709.34 |
|       7 | Gujarat           |                          52851.8  |
|       8 | Haryana           |                          15572.7  |
|       9 | Himachal Pradesh  |                           9464.29 |
|      10 | Jammu &Kashmir    |                          15960.3  |
|      11 | Jharkhand         |                          27999.7  |
|      12 | Karnataka         |                          51553.5  |
|      13 | Kerala            |                          27688.8  |
|      14 | Madhya Pradesh    |                          82754.7  |
|      15 | Maharashtra       |                         100250    |
|      16 | Manipur           |                           2386.93 |
|      17 | Meghalaya         |                           8142.9  |
|      18 | Mizoram           |                            959.51 |

| 19    | Nagaland                   |          2744.37 |
|-------|----------------------------|------------------|
| 20    | Orissa                     |  58301.2         |
| 21    | Punjab                     |  18931.4         |
| 22    | Rajasthan                  |  56439.8         |
| 23    | Sikkim                     |    791.14        |
| 24    | Tamilnadu                  |  49221.7         |
| 25    | Telangana                  |   4524.22        |
| 26    | Tripura                    |   6078.54        |
| 27    | Uttarakhand                |  12272.5         |
| 28    | Uttar Pradesh              | 207166           |
| 29    | West Bengal                | 133459           |
| 30    | A&N Islands                |    648.71        |
| 31    | Chandigarh                 |   1338.56        |
| 32    | D&N Haveli and Daman & Diu |   1307.94        |
| 33    | Delhi                      |   6935.43        |
| 34    | Lakshadweep                |     32.62        |
| 35    | Ladakh                     |    390.94        |
| 36    | Puducherry                 |    503.45        |
| Total | Total                      |      1.20675e+06 |