For teachers in the State, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin’s announcement to provide breakfast for students in government schools has come as a welcome initiative, given that it has been a long-pending demand.
In 2018, P.K. Ilamaran, a teacher at the Chennai High School in Kodungaiyur, noticed some students feeling drowsy during the morning assembly, and being listless during their morning classes.
“They were students who could not eat breakfast in the morning before coming to school as their parents, who were daily wage labourers, often left home early. We decided to provide breakfast for them from the nearby Amma Unavagams and the number of students who used to eat breakfast in school grew to nearly 150,” he said.
As a part of the Tamil Nadu Teachers Association (TNTA), Mr. Ilamaran said they had requested the State government to provide breakfast for all students in the past and are now happy that this would be introduced in a phased manner, beginning with primary students. “This will be sure to benefit students and ensure they are energetic during class and improve their overall health. We hope that when the scheme is implemented, food is made available on time early in the morning before classes begin,” he said.
At present, around 24.25 lakh children in primary classes in Tamil Nadu are beneficiaries under the Puratchi Thalaivar M.G.R. Nutritious Meal Programme, where they get lunch in schools everyday.
An elementary school headmaster in Ranipet, V. Saravanan said often young students in remote villages come late to class in the morning and say they had to wait for another relative to come and give them food as their parents go away early to work. “They often have to skip meals since they travel long distances and are low on energy. This is a welcome initiative and we hope that good quality food is provided to students on time,” he said. The newly reconstituted School Management Committees (SMCs), he said, should be involved in overseeing the implementation of this scheme and ensure it reaches all students.
Stating that local bodies could enter into tie-ups or partnerships with organisations, Patric Ramond, general secretary, Tamil Nadu Graduate Teachers Federation said the scheme’s implementation should focus more on the quality of food provided to the children.
“We have even noticed senior students, who come to write board exams skipping breakfast due to the non-availability at their homes in the morning. As a part of the demands put forth by the School Teachers Federation of India (STFI) in the past, we had asked for even a basic bread and milk to be provided to the students, and are now happy that they will get food in the morning,” he said.
CRY, an organisation working with Child Rights, said the scheme would immensely benefit school students and positively impact their health in the long run. “Children with hungry stomachs cannot focus on their studies. The scheme will also work towards preventing children from skipping school, while giving them adequate first-meal nutrition, which they otherwise lack,” said John Roberts, CRY’s Regional Director, South.
