Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister launches nutritious meal scheme

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu launched the Mukhyamantri Bal Paushtik Aahar Yojana in Hamirpur on Sunday to provide nutritious meals to children in government schools. CM said it would enhance the current midday meal scheme and was targeted at students from nursery to class 8 in 151,81 schools.

Under this scheme the students will be provided boiled eggs or fresh fruits to students once a week. Sukhu stated "Currently, about 5,34,293 (5.34 lakh) children are benefitting from the midday meal scheme. They will now receive additional nutrition under the new initiative." Additionally, state government has allocated Rs 12.75 crore for the scheme in the current fiscal year.

He further added that approximately 17,510 primary teachers will receive tablets as part of government’s effort to promote digitisation which aims to modernise teaching methods which will simplify administrative tasks and enhance access to digital educational resources.

The chief minister stated "By equipping teachers with these tools, there will be improvement in the overall quality of education. Additionally, the tablets will allow teachers to participate in online training programmes, further enhancing their professional development."

Sukhu criticised previous BJP government, claiming he state fall to the 18th place in quality education rankings. The current government is trying to improve the academic standards in the state.

He also stated that his government is working on three levels to improve education, which includes no shortage of funds to provide quality education to children, sending teachers on exposure visit to abroad and establishing Rajiv Gandhi Day Boarding Schools in every assembly constituency.

 In the first phase, 217 teachers were sent to Singapore on exposure visits. “Teachers bring changes and inspire progress, which is why they have a significant responsibility," the chief minister added.