CB Bureau One month from now, nearly 21,000 kids from 30 schools in
Chandigarh might not get their midday meal as NGO Swami Shivananda Memorial
Institute will withdraw its services and not supply food.
The NGO says it is not being able to meet the increasing
expenses and cannot afford to provide a meal at a mere Rs 3.33 per child during
inflation.
The NGO had started operating in 2008 and since then has been
providing meals at the same price.
NGO coordinator Parvesh said that a one-month notice has been
served to Chandigarh education department.
District education officer Chanchal
Singh said that they have received the notice, demanding increase in the cost of
meals, and are keen to sort out the issue within the notice period. Singh was
hopeful that the meals of children would not suffer.
Sources say that the department wanted the NGO to serve
puri chana and kheer twice a week. Apparently, however, the NGO had reasoned that this was not
possible at such a low cost, resulting in a conflict between the
parties.
Other organizations serving midday meals in the city include Dr
Ambedkar Institute of Hotel Management, which is preparing meals for 10,557
students; Chandigarh Institute of Hotel Management, which cooks for 14,479 students;
and Chandigarh Industrial and Tourism Development Corporation, which looks after
food for 15,967 students.
Interestingly, all the four organizations preparing midday
meals are charging different prices for the meal, while meals provided by these
organizations do not differ much.