Reducing Eggs in Midday Meals

It is shocking to learn that the Jharkhand government has decided to reduce the number of eggs given in a week in the school midday meals, from three to two. Earlier, the government allotted ₹ 4 per egg. With the increase in the price of eggs, it has revised the amount to ₹ 6 per egg. But, instead of increasing the total budget commensurately with the inflation in the cost of eggs, the government has decided to serve one less egg per child per week.

Introduction of eggs in schools, and later in the anganwadis, is one of the few noteworthy steps taken by the Jharkhand government to improve child nutrition in the state. Children in Jharkhand are amongst the most malnourished in the country. According to the National Family Health Survey-4 conducted in 2015–16, 35.8% children were underweight across the country. In Jharkhand, the corresponding ratio was as high as 47.8%.