Two lakh students in drought-hit areas of Andhra Pradesh to get mid-day meal support

Time of India

05-05-2025

Visakhapatnam: Of the 15.2 lakh students enrolled in govt primary schools in Andhra Pradesh, approximately 14 lakh availed of the mid-day meal scheme in 2024-25, accounting for nearly 92% coverage. However, the scheme's reach in upper primary schools dropped to 77%, with only 8.29 lakh out of 10.72 lakh eligible students benefiting from meals under the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman programme.
Interestingly, while primary school coverage improved from 88% in 2023-24 to 92% in 2024-25, upper primary coverage declined from 79% to 77% over the same period. In several districts — including Alluri Sitaram Raju, Kurnool, Prakasam, Kakinada, West Godavari, Bapatla, Tirupati, NTR, and Palnadu — the coverage in upper primary schools remains below 75%.
With drought officially notified in parts of six districts, Andhra Pradesh has proposed meal coverage for 1,23,142 primary students and 87,143 upper primary students during the ongoing 40-day summer vacation in affected areas. The state has also secured approval to engage 5,736 cook-cum-helpers for meal preparation and distribution during this period.
These points were highlighted in the minutes of the programme approval board (PAB) meeting on April 22, which reviewed Andhra Pradesh's annual work plan and budget for PM Poshan in 2025-26.
by Taboola
by Taboola
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According to the report (available with TOI), Andhra Pradesh reported 91% utilisation of its allocated food grain quota for April to December 2024. The PAB recommended improvements in supply chain management and urged the state to maintain a buffer stock in schools, as several institutions have flagged meal disruptions due to food grain shortages on the automated monitoring system.
For the 2024-25 financial year, the PAB sanctioned 88,296 cook-cum-helpers, of which Andhra Pradesh engaged 80,890 (92%). Central assistance has funded the construction of 32,347 kitchen-cum-stores over the years, all of which have been completed. Of the 93,058 approved kitchen device units, 92,214 (99%) have been procured. Officials cautioned against using aluminium cookware, warning of potential health risks due to aluminium leaching into food.
The state has established school nutrition gardens (SNGs) in 19,375 schools (44%) out of 43,915. However, districts such as West Godavari, Eluru, Anakapalli, and East Godavari report less than 30% coverage. As supplementary nutrition, the state govt provides eggs or fruits five days a week, Chikki three days a week, and Ragi malt three days a week from its own resources.
PM Poshan guidelines prescribe meal compositions of 100 grams of food grains, 20 grams of pulses, 50 grams of vegetables, and 5 grams of oil per child in Bal Vatika and primary schools. For upper primary students, the quantities increase to 150 grams of food grains, 30 grams of pulses, 75 grams of vegetables, and 7.5 grams of oil per meal.
The scheme also mandates the use of double-fortified salt, fortified oil, and specific pulse quantities — 20 grams per day for primary students and 30 grams for upper primary students on all school days. However, these fortified items are often unavailable in local markets near schools, resulting in their limited use in meal preparation.
The PAB advised the state to procure pulses from the Union govt's buffer stock through Nafed (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd) to ensure availability, cost savings, and adherence to nutritional norms, similar to the procurement of food grains.