- Regular hot meals should be provided to children in all government schools.
- Supply will be done from central kitchen in urban areas
An important meeting of the State Level Monitoring and Steering Committee of the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman Yojana was held today at the Secretariat (Mahanadi Bhawan) under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary of Chhattisgarh, Shri Vikassheel. In the meeting, the Chief Secretary has given strict instructions that in all the government primary and pre-secondary schools of the state, students from class 1 to 8 should be compulsorily provided hot meals and supplementary nutrition under the scheme. He clarified to the departmental officers that they should ensure continuous ground monitoring of the operation of the scheme in schools and regular supply of cooking gas (LPG fuel) should be ensured for cooking food.
- Emphasis on central kitchen system in urban and surrounding areas
The meeting discussed extensively the annual action plan for the 2026-27 academic year and the provision of food preparation through central kitchens. The Chief Secretary instructed officials to ensure that meals are prepared and supplied through central kitchens under the PM Poshan Shakti Yojana in schools located in and around urban areas of the state, ensuring excellent food quality and hygiene.
- Women self-help groups will be encouraged, fresh vegetables will be served.
Linking the scheme to the rural economy and nutrition, the Chief Secretary directed Agriculture Department officials to encourage women self-help groups involved in food preparation to cultivate vegetables and spices. This will provide fresh, green vegetables to school children and increase the income of these women’s groups.
- Current status of the scheme in Chhattisgarh
At the meeting, officials shared important statistics related to the scheme. The scheme is implemented in more than 56,000 government schools across the state. Through these schools, more than 2.9 million students are provided with hot meals and nutritional supplements on a daily basis. More than 86,000 cooks are involved in the preparation of the meals.
- High officials were present in the meeting
The meeting was attended by Dr. Kamalpreet Singh, Secretary, School Education Department, Mr. Siddharth Komal Pardeshi, Secretary, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department, Ms. Reena Baba Saheb Kangale, Food and Civil Supplies Secretary, Ms. Iffat Ara, Special Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management and Director, Civil Supplies Corporation, along with senior officers of Panchayat and Rural Development, Finance, Health, Women and Child Development Department and Chhattisgarh Human Rights Commission.