The Punjab government will consider launching the breakfast scheme like that of Tamil Nadu, said chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday, who was in Chennai to attend the expansion of the “CM’s breakfast scheme” to government aided schools across urban areas in Tamil Nadu.
The flagship programme of the Tamil Nadu government was launched in 2022 to provide free breakfast to school children studying in classes 1-5 in government schools which covered 300,000 students.
“From today, 20.59 lakh (2.059 million) students studying in 37,416 government and government-aided primary schools will benefit from the chief minister’s breakfast scheme,” chief minister MK Stalin said while launching the expansion. “Schools should not only provide education but must also address hunger.”
“The attention given to their nutrition along with good education is highly commendable,” Mann said in a post on X after having breakfast with the children in a government aided school in Chennai’s Mylapore.
The annual cost of the CM’s breakfast scheme is ₹600 crore. “But I will not call this an expense; it is a social investment. This investment will yield returns many times over for Tamil society in the years to come,” Stalin said, explaining that well-fed children would study well and contribute to the growth of the society.
Between December 2023 and December 2024, studies done by the state government stated that children’s health improved, hospital visits declined, attendance rose, learning outcomes improved, malnutrition decreased, and the incidence of infections had reduced.
{{/usCountry}}Between December 2023 and December 2024, studies done by the state government stated that children’s health improved, hospital visits declined, attendance rose, learning outcomes improved, malnutrition decreased, and the incidence of infections had reduced.
{{/usCountry}}“The scheme has also reduced parents’ burdens, especially for working families, by ensuring their children receive a nutritious meal at school,” the CM said.
Stalin said he was eagerly waiting to see the scheme take shape in Punjab. “After witnessing its impact here, he (Mann) said he would consider introducing a similar scheme in Punjab and hold discussions on it,” he said.
On September 15, 2022, the scheme was launched in Madurai. In the first phase, 1,545 schools and 1,14,095 students benefited.
On August 25, 2023, at Thirukkuvalai, the DMK government expanded the scheme to all government primary schools.
In 2024, it was extended further to rural government-aided schools. Till then, 1.7 million students had benefited.
Following its success, on Tuesday it was expanded to 2,429 government-aided schools in urban areas. This will benefit an additional 306,000 children.
In total, from Tuesday onwards, 2.059 million students studying in 37,416 government and government-aided primary schools across Tamil Nadu will eat freshly prepared nutritious breakfast every morning and enter their classrooms.