The Union Minister for Education Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ on Friday approved a proposal for Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of the cooking cost component of the Mid-day meal scheme to over 11.8 crore students in government schools.
One-time measure
It will give a fillip to the Mid-day Meal programme. This is in addition to the government’s free distribution of 5kg food grains per person per month to nearly 80 crore beneficiaries under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY), said an official statement.
The direct benefit transfer is a one time special welfare measure for school students studying in class I to VIII in the 11.20 lakh government and government-aided schools, the statement added.
The Central Government will provide additional funds of about ₹1,200 crore to State governments and UT Administrations for this purpose.
“This decision will help safeguard the nutritional levels of children and aid in protecting their immunity during the challenging pandemic times,” said the statement.