Mid-Day Meal Rules, 2015 Under National Food Security Act, 2013 Notified
Mid-Day Meal Rules, 2015 Under National Food
Security Act, 2013 Notified
The Central Government
notified ‘Mid Day Meal Rules, 2015’ on September 30th, 2015.
The National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA, 2013) contains provisions related
to welfare schemes including Mid Day Meal Scheme. In accordance with the
provisions of the Act, the Ministry of HRD has finalized the MDM Rules after
consultation with the States and other related Central Ministries. The rules
will be known as Mid Day Meal Rules, 2015 and will be in effect from the date
of notification in the Gazette of India.
The Rules inter alia provide for
temporary utilization of other funds available with the school for MDM in case
school exhausts MDM funds for any reason; Food Security Allowance to be paid to
beneficiaries in case of non-supply of meals for specified reasons; and monthly
testing of meals on a random basis by accredited Labs to check its quality.
Further, the Rules also provide that concerned State Governments shall fix
responsibility on the person or agency if meals are not provided on 3
consecutive school days or 5 days in a month. These rules and their effective
compliance by implementing agencies in the States will ensure better regularity
in serving mid day meals in schools and also improve quality of the meals as
well as overall implementation of the Mid Day Meal Scheme in the country. The
salient provisions of the rules are as under:
· Entitlements of children: Every child within the
age group of six to fourteen years studying in classes I to VIII who enroll and
attend the school, shall be provided hot cooked meal having nutritional
standards of 450 calories and 12 gm of protein for primary and 700 calories and
20 gm protein for upper primary free of charge every day except on school
holidays. The place of serving meals to the children shall be school only.
· Implementation of the Scheme: Every school shall have
the facility for cooking meal in hygienic manner. Schools in urban area may use
the facility of centralised kitchens for cooking meals wherever required in
accordance with the guidelines issued by the Central Government and the meal
shall be served to children at respective school only.
· Responsibility of School
Management Committee: The School Management Committee mandated under
Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 shall also monitor
implementation of the Mid-day meal Scheme and shall oversee quality of meals
provided to the children, cleanliness of the place of cooking and
maintenance of hygiene in implementation of mid day meal scheme.
· Utilization of School Funds: The Headmaster or
Headmistress of the school shall be empowered to utilise any fund
available in school for the purpose of continuation of Mid Day Meal Scheme in
the school in case of temporary unavailability of food grains, cooking cost
etc. in the school. The utilised fund shall be reimbursed to the school account
immediately after receipt of mid day meal funds.
· Testing of the meals by
Accredited Labs to ensure nutritional standards: Hot cooked meal provided to children shall be
evaluated and certified by the Government Food Research Laboratory or any
laboratory accredited or recognized by law, so as to ensure that the meal meets
with the nutritional standards and quality.
· The Food and Drugs
Administration Department of the State may collect samples to ensure the
nutritive value and quality of the meals. The samples shall be
collected at least once in a month from randomly selected schools or
centralised kitchens and sent for examination to the accredited
laboratories.
· Food Security Allowance.
- If the Mid-Day Meal is not provided in school on any school day due to
non-availability of food grains, cooking cost, fuel or absence of
cook-cum-helper or any other reason, the State Government shall pay food
security allowance by 15th of the succeeding month in the
manner provided herein below:-
(a) Quantity of Food grains as per
entitlement of the child; and
(b) Cooking cost prevailing in the
State.
Ø In case of non-supply of meal
by the Centralised Kitchen, the Food Security Allowance shall be realised from
the Centralised Kitchen as stated above.
Ø Provided that in case a child
has not taken food on offer for whatever reasons, no claim of food security
allowance shall lie with the State Government or Centralised Kitchens:
Ø Provided further that no claim
shall lie with State Government or Centralised Kitchen for reasons of quality
of food grains and meal:
Ø The State Government shall
take action to fix responsibility on the person or agency in accordance with
the procedure laid down, if mid day meal is not provided in school on school
days continuously for three days or at least for five days in a month.
Ø Wherever an agency of Central
Government is involved, the State Government shall take up the matter with
Central Government which shall resolve the matter within a
month.
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