Bhubaneswar: The Odisha School and Mass Education (SME) department has instructed all district education officers (DEOs) to ensure that vegetarian students are provided fruits in place of eggs under the PM-POSHAN scheme.

The directive came amid allegations that some schools were serving eggs to vegetarian students despite earlier guidelines mandating fruits as an alternative. The state nodal officer of PM-POSHAN has written to DEOs, asking them to strictly implement the updated mid-day meal (MDM) norms.

In August, the department had decided that students from Sishu Vatika (pre-primary) to Class X who do not consume eggs should receive fruits such as bananas, apples, or other seasonal varieties. These fruits are to be distributed on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, the days when eggs are served in schools.

Prevailing system and challenge

According to the guidelines, the cost of fruits should be equivalent to that of one egg, and schools were directed to make necessary procurement arrangements. However, reports suggest that many schools have yet to fully implement the new system.

Earlier, students who avoided eggs were allowed to take their share of raw eggs home or were served curry cooked separately before eggs were added for non-vegetarian students.

Several school heads have urged the government to involve self-help groups (SHGs) in managing the mid-day meal programme or to create dedicated posts to handle the growing operational load.

Also read: Odisha Govt plans to introduce 'Bhagavad Gita' session in schools.