HRD to reject Vasundhara Raje’s demand for pre-cooked meals

NEW DELHI: Both the UPA and the NDA governments clearly agree on at least the subject of mid-day meals. The Manmohan Singh government told off its own minister on the proposal to bring in pre-packaged food in the scheme, the Modi government is set to do so with one of its most prominent chief ministers.

The Prakash Javadekar-led Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry is set to shoot down a request repeatedly pushed for by Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje to allow serving of pre-cooked food under the Centre’s mid-day meals. It is gathered that the HRD ministry is of the firm view that rules and regulations do not allow any possibility of serving ready-to-eat pre-packaged food under the scheme and is set to convey the same clearly to Raje.

Sources told ET that the ministry has formulated a position on the subject citing the MDM Rules, 2015, the National Food Security Act, 2013, the MDM guidelines and the apex court’s directions to firmly reinforce that the meal to be served to primary and upper primary children in government schools is mandated to be a ‘hot cooked meal’.

The same will be formally conveyed to Raje, sources indicated. Raje has strongly pitched for introduction of pre packaged food in the flagship scheme, stepping in personally into the picture after her bureaucracy was shown the rule book by the Centre.




While the ministry under previous HRD minister Smriti Irani had at the very outset rejected the Rajasthan government’s proposal to modify the definition of the meal, in a letter dated June 3, 2016, CM Vasundhara Raje stepped in suggesting that the ministry re-evaluate the entire issue afresh and allow serving of ‘pre-cooked food’ under the scheme.

Raje had argued that even pre-cooked meals can be served hot. The Rajasthan CM had strongly advocated pre-cooked meals pointing out that it is hygienic, easy to store, easier to cook, and can be served hot and in little time without much manual effort.

It would also help in maintaining uniform nutritional standards in each meal that is being served and enable serving of different menus on different days, she had argued in her communication to the ministry. The subject has been a contentious one for years now. Before Raje, then Uttar Pradesh CM Mayawati had written to

PM Manmohan Singh in 2007 suggesting that ready-to-eat frozen food be served as sub-standard food material was being used to cook the meals and children were frequently falling ill. Women & Child Development minister under UPA-I, Renuka Chowdhury too had advocated the introduction of ready-to-eat meals for children in anganwadis in 2008, but it was rejected by the Cabinet.