The Opposition has accused West Bengal’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of imposing vegetarianism on schoolchildren by dropping eggs from the menu after it decided to involve the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in serving mid-day meals in Kolkata schools. ISKCON runs temples and institutions across the globe and promotes strict vegetarianism.
Finance minister Swapan Dasgupta announced the move of giving ISKCON the mid-day meal charge in his Budget speech on Monday. Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari assured the meal would be nutritious.
The new BJP government increased the budget for each meal from ₹6.78 set under the previous Trinamool Congress (TMC) administration to ₹10.
TMC leader Derek O’Brien said Bengal rejects depriving children of nutrition by taking eggs from midday meals and imposing vegetarianism. He cited the “fish-eating tamasha” during the election campaign, and said the “Gujarat Gymkhana” finally reveals itself, referring to the BJP’s efforts during the April-May polls to reassure voters that there would be no restrictions on the sale of meat, eggs, and fish, staples in West Bengal.
“New BJP govt at work in Bengal. Throw eggs at rivals. But DEPRIVE CHILDREN of nutrition by taking eggs off from midday meals. Imposing vegetarianism. Bengal rejects this,” he wrote on X.
{{/usCountry}}“New BJP govt at work in Bengal. Throw eggs at rivals. But DEPRIVE CHILDREN of nutrition by taking eggs off from midday meals. Imposing vegetarianism. Bengal rejects this,” he wrote on X.
{{/usCountry}}BJP supporters have thrown eggs at TMC leaders, including Lok Sabha member Abhishek Banerjee after the party lost power.
School education minister Dipak Burman said a vegetarian diet provides adequate nutrition. “Millions of people in India and abroad follow a vegetarian diet and live a healthy life. This argument has no scientific basis.”
ISKCON spokesperson (Kolkata) Radharaman Das did not respond to calls for a reaction.
Officials said ISKCON serves mid-day meals in around 20 cities in India, and it may take some time for it to set up kitchens to do the same in Kolkata.