Midday meal scheme to be monitored through SMS-based system from Aug

To check discrepancies, and lack of hygiene in the disbursal and arrangement of midday meal, an SMS-based monitoring system will be launched in the UT, which will cover 122 schools, from August.

To check discrepancies, and lack of hygiene in the disbursal and arrangement of midday meal, an SMS-based monitoring system will be launched in the UT, which will cover 122 schools, from August.

Under the scheme, 111 govt schools, seven govt-aided schools, four madrassas will be monitored on a daily basis. (HT File)

The software will monitor the midday meal system on a daily basis across 111 government schools, seven government-aided schools, and four madrassas.

Education department officials said a group of teachers and the mid-day meal in-charges will get training on ways to convey the information through SMS from Monday.

The system is ready. TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) has already approved a toll-free number, they added.

“With this initiative of the human resource and development ministry, real-time information can be ascertained,” said director school education (DSE) Rubinderjit Singh Brar. “The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is providing the technical support.”

Attendance, fund, food stock info on database

With the software, issues such as daily attendance of students, funds, and food stock in each school, and the leave status, will be addressed in a real time. Mid-day meal in-charges will provide all the information. In case, they fail to do so, school principals will be held responsible. District education officer Vinay Sood said he will seek explanation if either of them can’t provide the details. The phone numbers of principals, headmaster and midday meal in-charges are added to the database. As the schools will be linked through the geographical information system (GIS) mapping, any discrepancy, or incomplete information can be identified.

The UT will soon launch three more cluster-based mid-day meal kitchens so that students get hygienic and warm food. At present, Shivalik view (a CITCO unit), Chandigarh Institute of Hotel Management, Sector 42, and Dr Ambedkar Institute of Hotel Management are the main providers.