Teachers protest move to make principals responsible for mid-day meals

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Rajya Shikshak Sena, a teachers’ organisation and union working to address the professional, academic and service-related grievances of educators, staged a protest outside the education officer’s office in Jogeshwari on Wednesday against a proposed move to make school principals responsible for the mid-day meal programme

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Rajya Shikshak Sena, a teachers’ organisation and union working to address the professional, academic and service-related grievances of educators, staged a protest outside the education officer’s office in Jogeshwari on Wednesday against a proposed move to make school principals responsible for the mid-day meal programme.

Teachers protest move to make principals responsible for mid-day meals

The protest followed a letter written by JM Abhyankar, MLC from the Mumbai Teachers Constituency, to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner, raising concerns over reports that school principals may be required to obtain registration or a licence as Food Business Operators (FBOs) under food safety rules.

Abhyankar warned that if the licence is obtained in the name of a school, the principal could become legally responsible for the entire process of providing meals to students, from cooking to serving the food. This, he said, could also make principals liable for any irregularity or problem with the food, despite the fact that the grains and other food materials are supplied by the government and principals have no control over their quality.

In his letter, Abhyankar pointed out that teachers are already tasked with maintaining records of food materials and submitting reports, while the actual cooking is generally carried out by appointed workers. Expecting principals to closely monitor every stage of the process, he said, could be impractical when they are simultaneously responsible for education, academic administration and maintaining the quality of their schools.

Government instructions already require schools to maintain clean cooking areas and utensils, provide safe drinking water and ensure that students are served good-quality and balanced food. Schools are also required to check the quality and quantity of food materials, maintain daily records and ensure that students consume their meals in clean surroundings.

The guidelines further state that parents should taste the food before it is served, while the School Management Committee and the principal are responsible for checking the quality of the meals.

Against this backdrop, Abhyankar suggested that the government consider selecting NGOs through a district- or taluka-level tendering process to manage the mid-day meal programme. Where this is not feasible, he proposed that the responsibility be entrusted to the School Management Committee.

Abhyankar urged the FDA commissioner not to make school principals primarily responsible for the mid-day meal programme, arguing that they should instead be allowed to concentrate on their core responsibility, education and improving the quality of their schools.