Mid-day meal in Bihar lacks regular monitoring: CAG report

There is "absence" of internal controls and "regular" monitoring in implementation of mid-day meal scheme in Bihar during the year 2007-2008, a CAG report has said.

There is "absence" of internal controls and "regular" monitoring in implementation of mid-day meal scheme in Bihar during the year 2007-2008, a CAG report has said.

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"There has been complete absence of internal controls, regular monitoring and evaluation of the midday meal scheme for children during 2007-08", the Comptroller and Auditor General of India said in its report today.

It was tabled by Deputy Chief Minister S K Modi, who also holds the Finance portfolio, in the state assembly.

NSPE (nutritional support to primary education), a centrally-sponsored programme popularly known as mid-day meal scheme was launched in August 1995 in the country aiming to boost universalisation of primary education by increasing enrolment, retention, attendance and simultaneous improvement in the nutritional status of students.

The scheme was although extended to all primary schools in Bihar, it is yet to cover them.

However, the programme was reportedly suffering from inadequate foodgrains management and fund transfer mechanism, resulting in unsatisfactory implementation.