INTRODUCTION

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

According to World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 2001, “CSR is the
commitment of business to contribute to sustainable economic development, working with
employees, their families, and the local communities.”

Corporate sustainability has been derived from the concept of sustainable development.
“Sustainable development is meeting the needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. It refers to the role that companies
can play in meeting the agenda of sustainable development and demands a balanced
approach to economic progress, social progress and environmental stewardship.

Whereas, the new Companies Act 2013, which lays down that 2% of profits earned by a
certain class of companies must be spent on corporate social responsibility activities, would
mean an estimated Rs. 27,000 crores will flow into grassroots development and social
enterprise sectors every year.

It is observed that, CSR in India tends to focus on what is done with profits after they are
made. Hence, much of the Indian practice of CSR is an important component of
sustainability or responsible business.

However, CSR is now encompassing initiatives taken in respect to welfare of the workers
and their family as well as providing quality up to the standard, rational pricing,
contribution in women-children empowerment and awareness, steps for providing an ideal
environment to live in. Striving towards social welfare may or may not be lucrative in terms
of profitability to the firm but it’s company’s turn to pay back to the society.

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IMPORTANCE OF CSR

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) plays a major role in developing the economy of a
country. It can be defined as the way in which a company manages various business entities
to produce an impact on the society. Companies with high CSR standards are able to
demonstrate their responsibilities to the stock holders, employees, customers, and the
general public.

It is perceived that business organizations that have high corporate social responsibility
standards can attract staff thereby reducing employee turnover and cost of recruitment.

Companies voluntarily contribute a large sum of money to make a better society and a
clean environment. Corporate social responsibility is a process in which all companies
come together as one and take part in the welfare of the society.

Thus, many organizations conduct campaigns to create awareness among corporate, civic
bodies, and government bodies about the importance of corporate social responsibility.
Several national and multinational firms are booming in various developing countries. But
at the same time, these countries suffer social challenges such as poverty, corruption,
population growth, etc. Therefore, it is important for all companies to strive together and
adapt corporate social responsibility standards to make the society better than before.

An organization can exhibit a better image in the society if it cares for its employees and
involve them in social activities. The responsibilities of an organization may range from
providing small donations to executing bigger projects for the welfare of the society. Many
business houses around the world show their commitment to corporate social
responsibility.

We must remember that the growth of a country purely depends on the growth of the
society and the people in the society. These days, being a responsible participant in the
larger society is not optional for a company. To position their brand as a forward-thinking
corporate citizen, one must take authentic steps to provide solutions to common human
problems in the world around them.

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REASONS COMPANIES SHOULD EMBRACE CSR:

As per an article by Forbes, the reasons for companies to embrace CSR are as follows:

 Innovation – In the context of CSR, innovation is a huge benefit to a company and

society. For example, Unilever was able to innovate new products such as a hair
conditioner that uses less water. Without sustainability, the company’s research and
development efforts possibly wouldn’t have led to such a product.

 Cost savings – One of the easiest places for a company to start engaging in
sustainability is to use it as a way to cut costs. Whether it’s using less packaging or
less energy, these savings add up quickly.

 Brand differentiation – In the past, brand differentiation was one of the primary
reasons companies embraced CSR. For example, the “Cola Wars” is one of the
longest running rivalries in business. Coke and Pepsi are constantly looking to grab
as much market share as they can from each other. Yet they are both adopting
similar, although slightly different, approaches to CSR. Both Pepsi and Coke are
pursuing strategies of zero net water usage. Both companies offer water bottles
made from sustainable packaging as well.

 Long-term thinking – Indeed, CSR is an effort to look at the company’s long-term

interest and ensuring that the company’s future is well sustainable. Hence, that’s
why, the term sustainability to CSR. It is a shift from worrying about the next fiscal
quarter’s financial results to the impact business decisions today have on financial
and social results ten years from now.

 Customer engagement – What’s the point of doing CSR if no one knows about it?
For the past few years, Walmart has established itself as a leader on environmental

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 efforts. Walmart is a leader in environmentalism. In 2008, Walmart ran an ad
campaign designed to raise awareness about the environment and the product
choices consumers could make. Using CSR can help engage with your customers
in new ways. Since the message is about something “good,” it can often be an easier
way to talk to your customers.

 Employee engagement – Along similar lines, if the employees don’t know what’s
going on within their organization, the organisation is missing an opportunity.
Companies like Sara Lee created a cross-functional, global Sustainability Working
Team to help create a strategy for sustainability. At a more grass roots level,the
Solo Cup Company created the Sustainability Action Network to activate
employees in community service focused on the company’s CSR priorities.

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BENEFIT OF CSR TO BUSINESS

COMPANIES INVESTORS

EMPLOYEES SOCIETY

 Prevent financial ramifications: Compliance with the spirit and letter of the law
both nationally and internationally through self-regulatory processes will prevent
fines, put your business "low on regulators' radar screens," and lower legal
expenses.

 Increase employee loyalty: Treating your employees fairly and generously is a part
of corporate social responsibility. By providing good jobs and encouraging high
professional and moral standards, you increase employee loyalty, and by procuring
only those overseas products produced at factories where workers were treated
ethically, you gain support among "Fair Trade" advocates.

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 Maintain a positive reputation: Demonstrated consciousness in a variety of areas
can garner publicity and give a business tangible proof of their conduct, which can
be proudly displayed on a company website.

 Environmental consciousness: Reducing waste, recycling, minimizing carbon

footprint, and other best practices, using or producing only sustainable products,
lowering energy usage, and supporting environmental causes will boost a business's
"green reputation" among environmentally concerned clients.

 Social Concern: Donating to humanitarian causes that fight persistent poverty, help
the victims of epidemics like AIDS or Ebola, or assist those displaced by hurricanes
or earthquakes shows concern for issues that consumers are more and more aware
of in our modern, interconnected world.

 Local Community: Involvement in local community projects, either through

financial donations, employee participation, connecting your customers with
project leaders.

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AN OVERVIEW OF CSR PRACTICES OF FMCG COMPANIES IN INDIA

1. CSR initiatives taken by HUL

 Health & Hygiene education - “Lifebuoy Satya Chetna (LBSC)” had
inception on 2002. It was an endeavour to embed the awareness of
importance of “washing hands with soap” among the people living in rural
areas of Indian states like UP, Maharashtra, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, West
Bengal, Orissa etc.
 Women empowerment - HUL has taken CSR initiatives for empowerment
of women in India by making them aware and apprising them about
education, entrepreneurship etc by establishing “Fair & Lovely
Foundation”. “Fair & Lovely” is a well-known and reliable brand name
among Indian women. This foundation is working in collaboration with
state government.

2. CSR initiatives taken by TATA GROUP

Various CSR projects undertaken are mostly aimed at the upliftment of the poor levels of
the society.

 It engages itself in the women empowerment activities, income generation, rural

community development, and other social welfare programs.
 Apart from this, the company also engages itself in the field of education i.e. by
providing scholarships to various students and institutions and healthcare services
such as facilitation of child education, immunization and creation of awareness of
AIDS.
3. CSR initiatives taken by ITC
 Crop productivity improvement
 Livestock dairy development
 Health centres and camps
 Promotion of education
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  Solid and waste management
 Reducing child mortality and improving
 Farmer knowledge empowerment

4. CSR initiatives taken by NESTLE

As a responsible Company, it participates in business activities which help in improving

the quality of life for the communities where it operatescreating better livelihood
opportunities.

 Water and Sanitation - India is among the world’s most water stressed regions.
The Company focuses on helping farmers to reduce water usage in agriculture,
raising awareness on water conservation and providing access to water and
sanitation.
 Education - The Company focuses on supporting education, with a special focus
on education for the girl child.

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ROTARY E CLUB MUMBAI

REPORT ON CLUB ACTIVITIES & PROJECTS FOR THE YEAR 2018-2019

At SION EAST

 OBJECTIVES OF THE ROTARY

To encourage and foster the details of service as a basis of worthy enterprise.
In particular to encourage and foster:
 The development of acquaintance as an Opportunity for service.
 High ethical standards in business and professions. The Recognition of the worthiness
of all useful occupations and dignifying each Rotarians occupation as an opportunity to
serve today.
 The application of the ideals of service in every Rotarians personal, business
and community life.
 The advancement of international understanding Goodwill and peace through a
world of business and professional persons united in the Ideal of service.

The Four Way Test Of The Things We Think, Say or do

 Is it the Truth?
 Is it fair to all the ones concerned?
 Will it build Goodwill and better Friendship
 Will it be Beneficial?

Project: ISKCON Mid-Day meals

Date:31st August 2018
Location: Tardeo
Attendees: 9

Minutes:
 Contribution of mid-day meals for 4500 number of students at Rs. 60 each was given
to the mid-day meals authorities
 This helps in ensuring for 1 child’s lunch during working days for the entire year
 This was successfully done with the help of members and friends of members of
RCBMC

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MID-DAY MEAL SCHEME: A NUTRITIOUS PROMISE TO BOOST LEARNING
OUTCOMES

Investing in child nutrition is considered one of the most effective entry points for human
development

Only serving knowledges to the brain is useless unless u serve hearty meal to the stomach.
To fill the brain with knowledge, stomach need to be filled with food too;
To brain to think and taste the real joy of knowledge.
Learning gets real joy when school gets meal a day.

The concept of mid-day meal scheme is not new in India as its roots can be traced back to pre-
independence era when British administration initiated a Mid-Day Meal Programme for
disadvantage children in Madras Municipal Corporation in 1925. Like this many such
programmes were initiated in different states. In 1953, Government of Uttar Pradesh started
another such scheme. Tamil Nadu became the first state in India to introduce a noon meal
programme in primary schools. In 1984 this scheme was introduced in Gujarat. From time to
time the meal scheme was taken up by different states and later on it was taken up as a national
scheme1.

Government of India launched National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary

Education (Commonly known as Mid-Day Meal Scheme) on August 15, 1995 to provide mid-
day meal to the children studying at primary stage2. In 2002, the Supreme Court directed the
Government to provide cooked Mid-Day Meals (as opposed to providing dry rations) in all
Government and Government aided primary schools3. It was revised in September 2004 and
in September 20064.

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Pre-independence and post-independence initiatives

The roots of the programme can be traced back to the pre-independence era, when a mid-day
meal programme was introduced in 1925 in Madras Corporation by the British
administration. A mid-day meal programme was introduced in the Union Territory
of Puducherry by the French administration in 1930.

Initiatives by state governments to children began with their launch of a mid-day meal
programme in primary schools in the 1962–63 school year. Tamil Nadu is a pioneer in
introducing mid-day meal programmes in India to increase the number of kids coming to
school; Thiru K. Kamaraj, then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, introduced its first in Chennai
and later extended it to all districts of Tamil Nadu.

During 1982, July 1st onwards, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Thiru. M. G.
Ramachandran upgraded the existing Mid-day meal scheme in the state to 'Nutritious food
scheme' keeping in the mind that 68 lakh children suffer malnutrition.

Gujarat was the second state to introduce an MDM scheme in 1984, but it was later
discontinued.

A midday meal scheme was introduced in Kerala in 1984, and was gradually expanded to
include more schools and grades. By 1990–91, twelve states were funding the scheme to all or
most of the students in their area: Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya
Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tamil
Nadu, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh. Karnataka, Orissa, and West Bengal received international
aid to help with implementation of the programme, and in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan the
programme was funded entirely using foreign aid.

In Karnataka, Children's Love Castles Trust started to provide mid-day meals in 1997. A total
of eight schools were adopted and a food bank programme and an Angganwasi milk
Programme were started. The food-bank programme was replaced by the State Government
midday meal scheme.

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Background

With a view to enhancing enrolment, retention and attendance and simultaneously improving
nutritional levels among children, the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary
Education (NP-NSPE) was launched as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme on 15th August 1995.

In 2001 MDMS became a cooked Mid Day Meal Scheme under which every child in every
Government and Government aided primary school was to be served a prepared Mid Day Meal
with a minimum content of 300 calories of energy and 8-12 gram protein per day for a
minimum of 200 days. The Scheme was further extended in 2002 to cover not only children
studying in Government, Government aided and local body schools, but also children studying
in Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS) and Alternative & Innovative Education (AIE) centres.

In September 2004 the Scheme was revised to provide for Central Assistance for Cooking cost
@ Re 1 per child per school day to cover cost of pulses, vegetables cooking oil, condiments,
fuel and wages and remuneration payable to personnel or amount payable to agency responsible
for cooking. Transport subsidy was also raised from the earlier maximum of Rs 50 per quintal
to Rs. 100 per quintal for special category states and Rs 75 per quintal for other states. Central
assistance was provided for the first time for management, monitoring and evaluation of the
scheme @ 2% of the cost of foodgrains, transport subsidy and cooking assistance. A provision
for serving mid day meal during summer vacation in drought affected areas was also made.

In July 2006 the Scheme was further revised to enhance the cooking cost to Rs 1.80 per
child/school day for States in the North Eastern Region and Rs 1.50 per child / school day for
other States and UTs. The nutritional norm was revised to 450 Calories and 12 gram of protein.
In order to facilitate construction of kitchen-cum-store and procurement of kitchen devices in
schools provision for Central assistance @ Rs. 60,000 per unit and @ Rs. 5,000 per school in
phased manner were made.

In October 2007, the Scheme was extended to cover children of upper primary classes (i.e.
class VI to VIII) studying in 3,479 Educationally Backwards Blocks (EBBs) and the name of
the Scheme was changed from ‘National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary
Education’ to ‘National Programme of Mid Day Meal in Schools’. The nutritional norm for
upper primary stage was fixed at 700 Calories and 20 grams of protein. The Scheme was
extended to all areas across the country from 1.4.2008.

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Mid Day Meal in schools has had a long history in India. In 1925, a Mid Day Meal Programme
was introduced for disadvantaged children in Madras Municipal Corporation. By the mid 1980s
three States viz. Gujarat, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and the UT of Pondicherry had universalized
a cooked Mid Day Meal Programme with their own resources for children studying at the
primary stage by 1990-91 the number of States implementing the mid day meal programme
with their own resources on a universal or a large scale had increased to twelve states.

1. With a view to enhancing enrollment, retention and attendance and simultaneously

improving nutritional levels among children, the National Programme of Nutritional
Support to Primary Education (NP-NSPE) was launched as a Centrally Sponsored
Scheme on 15th August 1995, initially in 2408 blocks in the country. By the year 1997-
98 the NP-NSPE was introduced in all blocks of the country. It was further extended in
2002 to cover not only children in classes I -V of Government, Government aided and
local body schools, but also children studying in EGS and AIE centres. Central
Assistance under the scheme consisted of free supply of food grains @ 100 grams per
child per school day, and subsidy for transportation of food grains up to a maximum of
Rs 50 per quintal.

2. In September 2004 the scheme was revised to provide cooked mid day meal with 300
calories and 8-12 grams of protein to all children studying in classes I – V in
Government and aided schools and EGS/ AIE centres. In addition to free supply of food
grains, the revised scheme provided Central Assistance for (a) Cooking cost @ Re 1
per child per school day, (b) Transport subsidy was raised from the earlier maximum
of Rs 50 per quintal to Rs. 100 per quintal for special category states, and Rs 75 per
quintal for other states, (c) Management, monitoring and evaluation costs @ 2% of the
cost of foodgrains, transport subsidy and cooking assistance, (d) Provision of mid day
meal during summer vacation in drought affected areas.

3. In July 2006 the scheme was further revised to provide assistance for cooking cost at
the rate of (a) Rs 1.80 per child/school day for States in the North Eastern Region,

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 provided the NER States contribute Rs 0.20 per child/school day, and (b) Rs 1.50 per
child/ school day for other States and UTs, provided that these States and UTs
contribute Rs 0.50 per child/school day.

4. In October 2007, the scheme has been further revised to cover children in upper primary
(classes VI to VIII) initially in 3479 Educationally Backwards Blocks (EBBs). Around
1.7 crore upper primary children were included by this expansion of the scheme. From
2008-09 i.e w.e.f 1st April, 2008, the programme covers all children studying in
Government, Local Body and Government-aided primary and upper primary schools
and the EGS/AIE centres including Madarsa and Maqtabs supported under SSA of all
areas across the country. The calorific value of a mid-day meal at upper primary stage
has been fixed at a minimum of 700 calories and 20 grams of protein by providing 150
grams of food grains (rice/wheat) per child/school day.

From the year 2009 onwards the following changes have been made to improve the
implementation of the scheme:-

5. Food norms have been revised to ensure balanced and nutritious diet to children of
upper primary group by increasing the quantity of pulses from 25 to 30 grams,
vegetables from 65 to 75 grams and by decreasing the quantity of oil and fat from 10
grams to 7.5 grams.
6. Cooking cost (excluding the labour and administrative charges) has been revised from
Rs.1.68 to to Rs. 2.50 for primary and from Rs. 2.20 to Rs. 3.75 for upper primary
children from 1.12.2009 to facilitate serving meal to eligible children in prescribed
quantity and of good quality .The cooking cost for primary is Rs. 2.69 per child per day
and Rs. 4.03 for upper primary children from 1.4.2010.The cooking cost will be revised
prior approval of competent authority by 7.5% every financial year from 1.4.2011.
7. The honorarium for cooks and helpers was paid from the labour and other
administrative charges of Rs.0.40 per child per day provided under the cooking cost. In
many cases the honorarium was so little that it became very difficult to engage
manpower for cooking the meal. A Separate component for Payment of honorarium @

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 Rs.1000 per month per cook- cum-helper was introduced from 1.12.2009. Honorarium
at the above prescribed rate is being paid to cook-cum-helper. However, in some of the
states the honorarium to cook-cum-helpers are being paid more than Rs.1000/- through
their state fund. Following norms for engagement of cook-cum-helper have been made:

1. One cook- cum-helper for schools up to 25 students.

2. Two cooks-cum-helpers for schools with 26 to 100 students.
3. One additional cook-cum-helper for every addition of upto 100 students.

8. More than 25.25 lakhs cook-cum-helper are engaged by the State/UTs during 2016-
17 for preparation and serving of Mid-Day Meal to Children in Elementary Classes:
9. A common unit cost of construction of kitchen shed @ Rs.60,000 for the whole country
was impractical and also inadequate .Now the cost of construction of kitchen-cum-store
will be determined on the basis of plinth area norm and State Schedule of Rates. The
Department of School Education and Literacy vide letter No.1-1/2009-Desk(MDM)
dated 31.12.2009 had prescribed 20 sq.mt. plinth area for schools having upto 100
children. For every additional upto 100 children additional 4 sq.mt plinth area will be
added. States/UTs have the flexibility to modify the Slab of 100 children depending
upon the local condition.
10. Due to difficult geographical terrain of the Special category States the transportation
cost @ Rs.1.25 per quintal was not adequate to meet the actual cost of transportation of
foodgrains from the FCI godowns to schools in these States. On the request of the North
Eastern States the transportation assistance in the 11 Special Category States (Northern
Eastern States, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand) have been
made at par with the Public Distribution System (PDS) rates prevalent in these States
with effect from 1.12.2009.
11. The existing system of payment of cost of foodgrains to FCI from the Government of
India is prone to delays and risk. Decentralization of payment of cost of food grains to
the FCI at the district level from 1.4.2010 allowed officers at State and National levels
to focus on detailed monitoring of the Scheme.

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The MDMS was introduced primarily to protect the nutritional as well as the educational rights
of the children.1 This is due to the fact that children are not able to concentrate in their studies
with empty stomach and there is a need to focus upon the MDMS, to overcome child’s short
term hunger. Thus, initiating this kind of meal programme, Government of India aimed at
helping the children especially belong to the poor socio-economic background to attend school
and to have at least MDM through which their education as well as food related issues could
be tackled. Significantly, the scheme was intended for the tribal areas of various states in the
country where, the level of food insecurity and starvation is much higher and children are sold
due to acute poverty of the parents.

Therefore, MDMS is perceived as a major means to impart positive habits among the children
and also in educating them on the importance of health, sanitation, and socialization. It is also
seen as a factor for economic support to poor parents and educating them about the value of
education instead of sending their children for meager daily earnings. More importantly, it was
aimed to facilitate and increase the school participation among the underprivileged children
which would lead to their educational as well as economic upliftment.2 Further, the MDMS
promises to provide each child one third of the daily nutrient requirement in the form of cooked
meal to combat his/her food and nutritional deficiencies. The MDMS is the India’s second
largest food security programme. For the children and, it is perhaps the largest food security
programme. in the world. In this context, the main aim of this chapter is to trace the origin and
growth of this important scheme. However, there are many school meal or feeding programmes
introduced in different countries according to their indispensability. The Great Britain
introduced in 1945, whereas, United States America and Switzerland introduced in the year
1946. Other countries, like Japan and Australia were initiated in 1947 and 1950 respectively,
whereas India introduced in 1995.

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School Meal Programme in Different Countries

Name of the Country Year of introduction

United Kingdom 1945

United states of America 1946

Switzerland 1946

Japan 1947

Australia 1950

China 1964

Singapore 1975

India 1995

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Major Objectives of MDMS

The MDMS was started with two major objectives: firstly to enhance the child’s nutrition level
secondly to provide the basic education. Thus the MDMS was introduced basically to improve
the overall development of the primary school children’s education. Therefore, it has varied
objectives like:

• To increase the nutritional level of the school going children

• To enhance the educational attainment of the children

• To retain the children in the school for a long period of time

• To develop the process of socialization, etc.

Apart from the education, the nutritional aspects of MDMS have several dimensions including
elimination of classroom hunger, the growth of school children’s health. It is argued that if the
children come every day to school they can eat nutritious meal regularly and therefore child
starvation could be checked. This makes it possible not only to realize their intake of calories
and proteins but also to provide nutritional supplements such as Iron and Iodine, which are
required in many hilly regions. In this context, higher attendance in school provides opportunity
to implement MDMS which enable children to have meals and to be physically and mentally
fit. Thus, larger attendance in school is required to implement MDMS successfully because, if
the children come to school, only then they are entitled for the meal. That’s how higher
percentage of attendance is vital for the successful implementation of MDMS. These reforms
were enthusiastically undertaken and policy changes were made so as to strengthen the MDMS
and to make it available to each and every school going child. The main intention was to feed
more children through schools and making the state accountable and responsible for the
children. Emphasis was given more on hilly regions of the country where the hunger and
starvation rate is much higher. Hence, the perspective towards the MDMS changed with the
judicial intervention and is being perceived as an entitlement of the children leading to various
campaigns against the state government’s inaction towards its implementation. The parents,
teachers, and community members were mobilized to pressurize the respective governments to
implement the scheme as a matter of children entitlement. To this effect there was a major
campaign started on April 9, 2002 in 100 districts of nine states to express people’s
dissatisfaction with the respective state’s inaction towards the MDMS.16 In response to the
pressure from the Supreme Court as well as from the civil society organizations, with repeated

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campaigns, petitions and protests forced the government to consider child rights seriously. As
a result, the Government of India revised the guidelines for the MDMS in 2004 and later on in
2006. Therefore, the MDMS is being fully implemented in 20 states and 7 Union Territories
and partially in eight states.17 On the other hand, some states went beyond the national
guidelines. For example the Tamil Nadu and Kerala implemented the scheme from primary
classes to secondary classes and the destitute and aged were included in MDM beneficiaries.
In Gujarat, the scheme covered children from classes I to VII and the Orissa government started
providing MDM up to the VIII class.18 The states like Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and
Karnataka followed the new guidelines in line with the Supreme Court order dated April 20,
2004, and started providing cooked meals during summer vacations in their drought-affected
and hilly areas. In order to provide nutritious food, even the state governments received wide
moral and material support from the international agencies. When many states could not start
the scheme, few states on the other hand were providing daily nutritious meals to its children
with varied vegetables. For example, Tamil Nadu until 1961 the meals were largely consisted
of rice and sambar, which is one of the national dishes of Tamil Nadu is given the detailed
menu of Tamil Nadu government’s MDMS during late fifties even when at the national level
MDM was not initiated in full fledge. To this extent, in 1961, many states received assistance
from CARE in the form of food assistance for the programme and these were accepted and
integrated into the MDMS menus. The food assistance included milk powder, vegetable oil,
corn meal and bulgur wheat.20 After the CARE commodities were introduced, the menu of the
MDM were given alternatively. If one day was served with the menu of CARE material the
next day would be a local menu with rice.

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LITERATURE RVIEW

MID-DAY MEAL SCHEME: A NUTRITIOUS PROMISE TO BOOST LEARNING

OUTCOMES

Investing in child nutrition is considered one of the most effective entry points for human
development

One of the primary objectives of the Mid-Day Meal Scheme—the world’s largest school
feeding programme — is to enhance children’s nutritional profile, thus having a positive impact
on their health as well as learning outcomes. Nutrition, as we all know, forms the pillar for
sustainable growth of the human body and mind. So elaborate measures are taken to ensure
that the meal provided as a part of this school lunch initiative meets nutritional norms specified
as a part of the MDM Guidelines.

Our cumulative lifelong learning capacities and productivity are enhanced by adequate
nutrition in childhood. Therefore, investing in child nutrition is considered one of the most
effective entry points for human development. This makes nutrition welfare schemes such as
the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and Mid-Day Meal Scheme—with children
as their beneficiaries, integral to human development, and thus, socioeconomic development
of the country.

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The beneficiaries of the Mid-Day Meal Programme are children in the age group of 6 to 14
years. The speedy growth associated with this age creates increased demands for energy and
nutrients, particularly at the peak of the adolescent growth spurt, when the nutritional
requirements can be higher than the remaining period of adolescence. Therefore, it is necessary
to address the nutritional gaps at this particular age by satiating short-term hunger and at the
same time, providing opportunities to combat long-term hunger. Both are equally important to
boost the concentration levels in the children for enhanced learning outcomes.

The nutritious meal no doubt serves as an incentive for children to come to school, thus opening
for them the door to education and opportunities. This is evident from increased enrolment,
attendance, and retention in schools across the country. The same is also validated by the first-
hand accounts of parents who send their children to school only because it ensures them one
proper meal every day. However, it is also instrumental in satiating short-term hunger and
laying foundation for combating hunger and malnutrition in the long-term.

In the short-term, the Mid-Day Meal Programme seeks to address classroom hunger—an
impediment to learning in children. As we all have experienced at some point or the other,
hunger affects our concentration levels and hinders our ability to focus on the job at hand.
Imagine a child coming to school without having breakfast! For many children, the mid-day
meal is the first—and at times the only—proper meal of the day.

That the Mid-Day Meal Scheme is designed to ensure adequate nutrition for children is
important, considering that a large number of its beneficiaries are at the peak of the adolescent
growth spurt. While addressing the issue of classroom hunger is a short-term intervention,
providing nutritious food to children over a considerable period is the long-term intervention
to improve children’s nutritional and health status, thus leading to better cognition. As a result,
children get better at interpretation, decision making, problem solving, etc., the cumulative
impact of which is seen in the form of better long-term learning outcomes.

Moreover, when children are healthy, they are less likely to miss school due to illness, and
considering that absenteeism is one of the major impediments when it comes to education, the

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nutritional mid-day meal is no doubt a blessing for children. In a country like India, where
hunger and malnutrition are chronic issues, long-term exposure to a nutritional program as an
educational intervention is of great significance. In ensuring that children get access to
nutritional food every school day, the Mid-Day Meal Scheme is providing a platform for their
physical and cognitive development, and in doing so, setting the stage for the bright future of
the country.

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ARE MID DAY MEALS THE WAY TO BRING BACK CHILDREN TO SCHOOL?

Many a times we notice poor children begging on the streets, sitting on pavements or just
roaming around. A sense of pity strikes in but hardly do we ever ask ourselves some rational
questions about their health, needs and education. These children did not wish for and do not
deserve the kind of life they lead. For them life is a struggle for even the basic necessities such
as food, clothing etc. Most of these children are malnourished due to lack of proper food.

Education and Health; the most important facets of life are largely ignored. Even one meal a
day is a struggle for them. Their right to education is taken away from them because going to
school will not fetch them anything. Their parents usually withdraw them from schools to earn
some extra money and support their family. This messes up with their education and their
careers are just reduced to doing odd jobs for their entire lives.

Here steps in the role of schemes like the MID DAY MEAL. Under the scheme the students in
primary and upper primary classes are given free lunch in schools in order to induce more and
more students to attend schools. When earning a day’s food is a struggle free lunch at school
is motivating enough for the parents to send their children to schools. This ensures that the
children get proper education and it also relieves their parents of the responsibility to give their
children food.

The food served at schools is prepared keeping in mind the health and nutrition standards. It
helps to fight the problem of malnourishment by ensuring that the food has the required
nutrients. The scheme helps to increase enrolment of children in schools, improves attendance
and the health standards of the children. Not only does the scheme help the children but it also
creates employment. Many women are employed for preparing food in schools. In this way it
also leads to women empowerment.

The scheme has emerged a game changer largely benefitting the underprivileged people.
Through schemes like these and their successful implementation India can triumphantly climb
the ladder of social empowerment. It will provide a level playing field to all the sections of the
society wherein everyone would be open to opportunities and excel in whatever field one
chooses.

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WHAT IT TAKES TO DELIVER MIDDAY MEAL

Twenty-three children died in Bihar after consuming adulterated food served under the Mid
Day Meal Scheme. Since then eight more states have reported incidents of food poisoning
caused by midday meals, putting a big question mark on the scheme's implementation.
SUNITA NARAIN suggests ways to revive this critical scheme

The tragic loss of 23 young lives because of contaminated food in a Bihar school is
unacceptable. But it is also a fact that the Mid Day Meal Scheme, under which cooked food is
compulsorily provided to children in government schools, is too important and critical to give
up on. The only questions that matter are: why does the scheme not work as well as it should
and what can be done to fix it?

The answers are complicated. Providing nutritious food to children in schools helps address
two key problems; hunger and education. Progressive political leaders found the answers in
their states. In 1982, M G Ramachandran, the then chief minister of Tamil Nadu, set up the
nutritious meal programme. It is legendary that he took deep interest in the working of the
scheme. Former district officials will tell you of his surprise trips to schools and his fury if
anything was found out of order. This was top priority, so it worked.

In the mid-1990s, the Central government adopted these ideas coming from different states and
framed a national midday meal scheme. But nothing much happened. In 2001, the Supreme

24
Court directed all governments to provide cooked food to all children in primary schools. Since
then the scheme has evolved. The Central government agreed to provide free grain (rice and
wheat) and funding for transport, cooking cost and recently even an honorarium for the cook.
The state government is required to top up this funding; pay for vegetables and pulses; provide
infrastructure in schools and manage affairs.

Be in no doubt that this is a big and complex affair. It is estimated that some 117 million
children studying up to standard 8 are fed cooked meals every day in some 1.26 million schools
and other such centres. The scheme, according to government figures, provides employment to
some 2.6 million cooks and helpers. The operations are complicated. Money comes from the
Centre in four instalments to states; it then reaches districts and individual schools based on
enrolment, off-take and spending. Grain is procured from the storehouse of the Food
Corporation of India, transported to districts and then to schools. There are detailed guidelines
on how this will work and who will oversee it and even taste the food before serving. It would
be difficult to find a parallel in the world for the scale and deployment under this scheme.

But the question remains. Children died in Bihar. There is evidence from many other places
that food is not hygienic or nutritious. More seriously, persistent malnutrition continues to
shame the country. So what is wrong?

Let me point out the directions in which we should not look for answers. One, we should not
look for more schemes or new schemes to replace the old. Two, we should not stop cooking
food and replace it with what is considered to be more feasible to supply—biscuits and
packaged food that comes from large and small corporates. There is a big push for this. It is
not surprising since many eye the Rs 10,000 crore annual budget for meals under the scheme.

The solution is to get down to fixing what is broken. First, focus on what is now called old-
fashioned governance, which prioritised the deliverables and then obsessed about how it was
being done. It is clear from the states where the programme is working successfully that it
requires attention to detail; it needs involvement of those placed the highest in the land—
surprise visits, inspections and reports. This will send the signal to the system—however much
in disrepair—that food for children is priority.
This also means that state governments—ministers and chief ministers—must have greater
reputational advantage of getting the delivery right. In the current system nobody gets the kudos
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for doing it well, but everybody is running away from the blame.

Second, focus on the paraphernalia of delivery. We put every conceivable scheme in the hands
of the hapless (and now increasingly corrupt) local panchayats—each sarpanch manages some
80 different accounts and some 150 different schemes. But there is absolutely no effort to invest
in the management support functions of these bodies. If we believe—as we must—that the best
institutions for governance are communities then it is time to fix their office. Stop thinking that
it is low-cost and voluntary. Management takes money and people. Invest there.

Third, focus on money itself so that we can achieve the change we desire. The Central
government pays close to Rs 3 for each primary school child and a little more than Rs 4 for
older kids. This is in addition to transport costs (at 2006 rates) and Rs 1,000 per month for
cooks and helpers. In Tamil Nadu, the midday meal organiser gets Rs 7,000 per month and the
cook and helper are paid Rs 5,000 each. Clearly, this is what it takes. Instead, we short-change
our programmes. This is also because we have inefficient delivery and we then have to spread
what is available so thinly that it does not really make a difference.

It is ironical that two decades after Rajiv Gandhi’s famous and oft-quoted statement that out of
every Rs 1 spent on development only 15 paisa reaches the poor, we know nothing more about
where it goes and why.

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CHALLENGES FACED BY THE MID DAY MEAL SCHEME (MDMS) TODAY

The first challenge in the Mid Day Meal programme is universalizing it. Despite the fact that
the Supreme Court had directed the universalisation of this programme in 2001, we find that
in many places, it had still not started. A recent example is of Kolkata, where a majority of
schools run by the municipal corporation do not have the scheme operational as yet. The second
challenge is meeting minimum norms of quality in schools across India. In our evaluations, I
still find very divergent standards in quality across the country, and it is still very poor,
especially in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. The third challenge, and perhaps the most
pressing one today, is that food inflation is impacting both the quality and quantity of food that
is being served in the schools across the country. We have been demanding for many years
now that the cost norms for this scheme should be linked to inflation and they should be
enhanced periodically. Unfortunately that has not been done by successive governments. I also
believe that continuing caste discrimination in the serving of the meals wherein in dalit children
are served separately is the greatest shame for our country. Despite the fact that there are
Supreme Court orders which specifically direct State Governments to give preference to Dalit
cooks in order to break caste stereotypes. In many places, district administrations are replacing
dalit cooks with upper caste cooks under pressure from parents. That this is happening with
dalit children in twenty first century India is a great travesty. The Karnataka Government did
a large survey asking children what they wanted to eat in Mid Day Meals offered through
primary schools and the overwhelming response was ‘eggs’. Yet the government chose to go
for milk. Though the MDMS is meant for children, yet children’s voices remain unheard…. It
is very unfortunate that the decision to remove eggs was taken in Karnataka when there was an
overwhelming consensus amongst children that they should be served eggs. We have reliably
learnt that this decision was prompted by religious organizations who are involved in the supply
of the Mid Day Meal Scheme. It is our belief that decisions on food choices should be guided
only by nutritional interests. If some children do not consume eggs, they can be given bananas
or other fruit, as is being done in Tamil Nadu. Perhaps much better decisions on this can be
taken, in line with the principles of food sovereignty if the cooking of the meal is completely
decentralised and large organizations, especially those that are non-secular are kept out. Having
said this, I must also add that of all the food schemes, the Mid Day Meal is still amongst the
better run schemes in the country. The government of India has requested all State
Governments to think of ways in which the community can be involved in monitoring the

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MDMS (GOI 2006). What are your experiences across the various states. We believe that
Panchayats and other local bodies should be in charge of the implementation of the scheme at
the local level. Our experience is that the MDMS runs best when local women’s self-help
groups are involved in the cooking of the meals and when oversight is provided by mothers
committees. Since local communities have a very strong stake in the nutrition of their children.
This is the safest bet against corruption in the programme. There are many best practices in this
regard that I have seen in different states that can be easily replicated. For instance, in
Meghalaya, they have printed the weekly menus on the last sheet of all notebooks that are
provided to school children and they can mark their meals in the notebook much in the same
way that their teacher mark attendance. Similarly, many states/ NGOs have experimented with
social audits of the Mid Day Meals, mothers committees, cooking by Self-Help Groups and
linking school meals with fortification programmes. There is vast potential in replicating these
programmes. The role of public action in persuading the states to initiate the scheme has been
commendable. In this light could you highlight the role that citizens can play to ensure proper
implementation, quality and monitoring of the MDMS. There is no substitute to public action
for demanding accountability. Public vigilance will not only reduce corruption but also lead to
better quality of food being served. In urban areas, for instance, local bodies can periodically
inspect the school meals and in rural areas panchayats can play a similar function. Bi-annual
social audits by local communities should be made mandatory for the programme in order to
strengthen public accountability.

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 PROJECT DETAILS

1. PROJECT TITLE:

Mid-Day Meals

2. OBJECTIVES AND LIMITATIONS OF THE PROJECT:

OBJECTIVES
1. To study and understand the concept of mid-day meals
2. Encouraging children to attend school more regularly and concentrate on school
activities.
3. To help overcome the challenges of Mid-day meals by increasing the awareness.

LIMITATIONS
1. Time constraints

3. SCOPE:

Project covers the study of understanding the importance of Mid-Day Meals and the various ways
to increase the awareness about the scheme.

4. METHODOLOGY TO BE USED:

Qualitative methodology.

5. SOURCES OF DATA:
Sources of Secondary Data: Research conducted through search engines, research papers,
case study, books.

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DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

 It can be seen as two side either positive or negative, talking about positive side they
are catering to 4500 under privileged students who are not getting the food, whereas in
negative side the amount of food intake is not proper, secondary students are not getting
the amount of food they require.

 Rotary is providing food to students but they are not monitoring it whether they are
getting it or not.

 After providing meals they should conduct some health check-up camps to see the
students are fit or not.

 Panchayats and other local bodies should be in charge of the implementation of the
scheme at the local level.

 The role of public action in persuading the states to initiate the scheme has been
commendable. We can highlight the role that citizens can play to ensure proper
implementation, quality and monitoring of the Mid-Day meals Scheme.

 The Mid-Day Meal Program has played a crucial role in promoting education for
children in the country, encouraging children to attend school and partake of nutritious
and healthy meals. This has not only increased attendance of children at schools but
also gives children the required amount of nutrition.

 The Mid-Day meal menu that should actually be served in the schools:

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Monday - Roti; Subji mixed with soya chunks
Tuesday - Rice; Dal
Wednesday - Kadhi and Rice
Thursday - Roti; Subji mixed with potato and other vegetables
Friday - Thahari
Saturday - Rice; Soya chunks curry with vegetables

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CONCLUSION

 The existing overall poor nutritional status of majority of the children appears to be due
to insufficient food intakes, mainly on account of economic reasons. Hence, it is
recommended that more quantity of low cost foods may be provided to the children,
through govt. schemes such as the PDS so that the children’s total day’s requirements
of energy and nutrients are met.

 Nutritional quality of the MDM may further be improved by the school authorities by
judicial purchase of vegetables and fruits. Inclusion of green leafy vegetables every day
is recommended. Fortified foods which will take care of micronutrient deficits are also
recommended.

 Some of the children in the primary schools are of the upper primary age group. Their
RDA of nutrients are higher and hence they may be served higher quantity of MDM
than the quantity allowed for primary school children.

 The menus and quantities of foods which are being served under the MDM in the
primary and upper primary schools of Allahabad in general are as per the norms laid
down by the government/DM. Sources of important micronutrients are, in general,
inadequate.

 The nutritional status of MDM girl beneficiaries on the whole, is better than that of the
non-beneficiaries. However, in comparison to standards the condition of even the
beneficiaries is not satisfactory.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

http://www.forbesindia.com/blog/health/mid-day-meal-scheme-a-nutritious-promise-to-
boost-learning-outcomes/

https://www.thebetterindia.com/80756/have-you-ever-wonder-how-mid-day-meal-scheme-
work/

https://www.smilefoundationindia.org/blog/2018/07/11/are-mid-day-meals-the-way-to-bring-
back-children-to-school/

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/what-it-takes-to-deliver-midday-meal-41763

http://www.cry.org/resources/pdf/POV_Oct10/005.pdf

http://www.cry.org/resources/pdf/POV_Oct10/005.pdf

http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/43641/18/18_chapter%207.pdf

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