Latest news with #PM-Poshan
Time of India
24-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Haryana approves budget for PM Poshan scheme to enhance nutrition in schools
Chandigarh: The State Level Steering-cum-Monitoring Committee (SLSMC) for the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM-Poshan) Scheme (formerly Mid-Day Meal Scheme) met on Thursday under the chairmanship of chief secretary Anurag Rastogi. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The committee approved a budget of Rs 665.65 crore for the financial year 2025–26. The scheme aims to benefit more than 1.5 million children, including 80,862 in bal vatikas, 828,533 in primary, and 638,714 in upper primary schools across the state. The chief secretary emphasised the need for effective and timely implementation of the scheme to ensure that nutritious, protein-rich meals reach every eligible child. He directed officials to adopt best practices from other states and incorporate menu improvements based on nutritional science and local dietary preferences. He said, "This scheme is not just about providing meals; it is a mission to ensure the universalisation of primary education by improving enrolment, retention, and attendance, while also enhancing children's nutritional status. " During the meeting, it was informed that, on the suggestion of the additional chief secretary, health, steps were taken to plant green leafy vegetables like methi, palak, and sarson in 10,080 school kitchen gardens across the state. Additional chief secretary, school education, Vineet Garg, said to further enhance the nutritional impact of the scheme, the department recently signed an LoU with the World Food Programme for four districts: Mewat, Panipat, Sonipat, and Palwal (only Hathin block). As part of enhanced nutritional support, 'pinni' is being distributed once a week in Bhiwani and Mewat as a supplementary food item. Milk to be served 6 days a week Furthermore, chief minister Nayab Singh Saini approved the department's proposal to serve 200 ml of skimmed flavoured milk six days a week, instead of the earlier three days, in all districts. In addition, pinni will now be distributed once a week across all districts. On two days a week, protein milk bars will also be provided to students from bal vatika to Class 8 in all govt schools. MSID:: 122881015 413 |
Indian Express
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
50% students left out of mid-day meal, Centre seeks report from state
A sharp decline in the number of students availing the Mid-Day Meal (PM-POSHAN) in West Bengal — 10 lakh fewer students availing the scheme in 2025-26 as compared to 2023-24 – points to increasing school dropouts in the state. According to the latest minutes of the Programme Approval Board (PAB) under the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM-POSHAN), more than 40 per cent of enrolled students did not avail of the mid-day meal in 2024-25 in 15 districts of the state, with Cooch Behar having the least coverage of 46 per cent. Expressing 'serious concern' over this trend, the Additional Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Government of India, has sought a report from the West Bengal government by June 30. The PAB noted a reduction of 4.01 lakh in students' enrolment from 2023-24 to 2024-25, and a decrease of 8.04 lakh in actual student coverage. The state's proposed enrolment for 2025-26 has dropped by another 6 lakh students. 'The PAB expressed that efforts may be made to cover all the eligible students under the (Mid-Day Meal) scheme,' the minutes of PAB read. While coverage of the PM-Poshan at the pre-primary and primary levels stood at 78 per cent and 74 per cent, respectively, it fell sharply at the upper primary level to just 58 per cent according to the minute's data. According to the data, 1,13,44,146 students were enrolled in PM-POSHAN in 2024-25. However, only 77,91,946 — about 69 per cent — received meals. The numbers were worse in districts like Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri, Malda, Murshidabad, Paschim Bardhaman, and North 24 Parganas districts, where less than half the enrolled students availed the meals. (See box) For 2025-26, the PAB has approved coverage for 80,16,881 students—7,25,624 in balvatika (pre-primary), 48,09,138 in primary, and 24,82,119 in upper primary classes, according to the minutes. The minutes also flagged irregularities in fund management. 'The PAB expressed concern that some schools, implementing agencies, and municipal corporations are still holding funds outside the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) accounts. The state has been advised to transfer these funds immediately and take action against officials responsible for the delays and violations of Government of India guidelines,' the minutes noted. Sources in the state School Education Department cited an increased dropout rate, especially at the upper primary level, as a key reason for the falling numbers. 'It is common practice to avail maximum funds. Sometimes the state gives increased numbers as enrolled students. But, in this case, the actual number of students is much less, which means dropout rates have increased in the state education system,' said a senior official of the state education department. He added that frequent long vacations, decreasing school days, and a widening teacher-student ratio due to unfilled vacancies have all contributed to students leaving the system. Atri Mitra is a Special Correspondent of The Indian Express with more than 20 years of experience in reporting from West Bengal, Bihar and the North-East. He has been covering administration and political news for more than ten years and has a keen interest in political development in West Bengal. Atri holds a Master degree in Economics from Rabindrabharati University and Bachelor's degree from Calcutta University. He is also an alumnus of St. Xavier's, Kolkata and Ramakrishna Mission Asrama, Narendrapur. He started his career with leading vernacular daily the Anandabazar Patrika, and worked there for more than fifteen years. He worked as Bihar correspondent for more than three years for Anandabazar Patrika. He covered the 2009 Lok Sabha election and 2010 assembly elections. He also worked with News18-Bangla and covered the Bihar Lok Sabha election in 2019. ... Read More
Fashion Value Chain
22-04-2025
- Health
- Fashion Value Chain
Millers for Nutrition, Fortify Health, and The Akshaya Patra Foundation Unite to Improve Nutrition in India
Millers for Nutrition, a coalition of key food fortification stakeholders dedicated to helping millers fortify staple foods, is proud to announce a partnership with Fortify Health and The Akshaya Patra Foundation, an implementing partner of the PM POSHAN program, to supply fortified wheat flour to 3416 schools in Gujarat. The flour will be used to make meals for over 400,000 children. Millers for Nutrition, Fortify Health, and The Akshaya Patra Foundation join hands together for nutritious meals As part of this initiative, millers including Century Industries (Ahmedabad), Shakti Food Industries (Bhuj), Achyut Cereals & Pulses (Jamnagar), Shreeji Food Products (Vadodara), Momai Traders (Bhavnagar), and Giriraj Food Product (Surat) will collectively supply about 350 metric tons of fortified wheat flour every month to Akshaya Patra's centralized kitchens in these cities, ensuring a steady and nutritious food supply for students. 'Millers for Nutrition is proud to partner with Fortify Health and The Akshaya Patra Foundation to enhance nutrition in India,' said Monojit Indra, Senior Practice Lead, TechnoServe. 'Together, we can make a meaningful impact on the health and well-being of millions of children across the country.' Over the past year, Millers for Nutrition, in collaboration with Fortify Health, The Akshaya Patra Foundation, and the Gujarat Roller Flour Millers Association, has conducted fortification trainings in Gujarat to help millers produce high-quality fortified wheat flour. Demonstrating a win-win-win, the initiative has successfully scaled up wheat flour fortification, enhanced childrens nutrition, and supported miller businesses. Sri Bharatarshabha Dasa, Trustee and National President at The Akshaya Patra Foundation, said,'We at The Akshaya Patra Foundation are honored to collaborate with Millers for Nutrition and Fortify Health in this transformative initiative. By integrating fortified wheat flour into the meals of over 400,000 children in Gujarat, we are not just addressing nutritional needs but are actively contributing to a brighter, healthier future for the next generation. This partnership stands as a testament to the power of collaborative effort in making substantial health improvements across communities. Together, we are setting a remarkable precedent for nutritional welfare in India.' Tony Senanayake, CEO at Fortify Health,said, 'Fortify Health is proud to collaborate with The Akshay Patra Foundation leading the way in institutional nutrition across Gujarat. They are delivering high-quality, iron-fortified chakki atta through six central kitchens, reaching over 4 lakh vulnerable individuals, including school children under PM-Poshan. This partnership demonstrates how simple, scalable interventions can effectively improve public health and nutrition outcomes in a state with a high anaemia burden.' About The Akshaya Patra Foundation The Akshaya Patra Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation which strives to address classroom hunger and malnutrition in India. As the implementing partner of the Government of India's PM POSHAN Abhiyaan (Mid-Day Meal Scheme), the Foundation provides hot, nutritious and tasty mid-day meals to children in government and government-aided schools every day to support their nutrition and education. In partnership with the Government of India, various state governments and UT administrations, and the inestimable support of many philanthropic donors and well-wishers, the Foundation has grown from humble beginnings serving just 1,500 school children across five schools to becoming one of the largest (not-for-profit run) school feeding programme in the world, serving wholesome food to over 2.25 million children from 23,000+ schools across 17 States and 3 Union Territories in India. Akshaya Patra continuously forges partnerships and leverages technology to cater to millions of children and has served over 4 billion meals since 2000. The momentous milestone was commemorated at a special event at the UN headquarters in New York on 2 April 2024. For more details, please log on About Fortify Health Fortify Health has a vision for a healthier world where everyone has the micronutrients they need to survive and thrive. We work toward this by enabling access to micronutrient-rich wheat flour to reduce and prevent iron deficiency anaemia. We are now active in 14 states/UTs across India, working with 150 mills across India to reach more than 7 million beneficiaries. Fortify Health provides technical support to governments and NGOs to integrate wheat flour fortification into various programs such as the Andhra Pradesh State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited, Punjab Development Corporation, The Akshaya Patra Foundation and Touchstone Foundation. Fortify Health operates through three work streams. Open Market Support: We support millers to cost-neutrally fortify chakki atta in the open market. Partnership Support: We work with governments, quasi-government and non-government organisations in India to mainstream wheat flour fortification through social safety net programs. Evidence Generation: We conduct monitoring and evaluation of activities to inform the public about the value of food fortification. For more details, please log on About Millers for Nutrition Millers for Nutrition is supported by Strategic Fortification Partners: BASF, BioAnalyt, Bhler, dsm-firmenich, Mhlenchemie, SternVitamin; Regional Strategic Fortification Partners: Hexagon Nutrition, Piramal, Sanku; and a growing group of local technical partners that share a common vision of improving food processing practices and fortification excellence to benefit society and enhance business sustainability. Millers for Nutrition is powered by TechnoServe with funding support from the Gates Foundation. Millers, food fortification stakeholders, and others interested in joining the coalition can learn more at
