Telangana High Court Informed Of State's Measures To Ensure Food Safety After Mid-Day Meal Incidents
The Telangana High Court was informed that the state government has implemented measures to ensure adherence to food safety standards following multiple incidents where students were hospitalized after consuming mid-day meals in government-run schools between November 20 and 26, 2024.
This development followed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed to address the non-implementation of a Government Order (GO) issued in 1994, which mandated that all state-run and local-body schools provide mid-day meals.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J. Sreenivas Rao, reviewed the action taken report submitted by the state on December 2, 2024.
The Court was updated on the government's actions by the Additional Advocate General, who revealed that a memo issued on November 27, 2024, mandated the constitution of additional committees to supervise the preparation and distribution of mid-day meals.
These newly established committees will consist of the Head Master/Principal/Warden and two other staff members, with the following responsibilities:
- Inspecting the store room and kitchen before meal preparation.
- Tasting the food to ensure it meets quality standards before it is served.
- Taking photographs of both the inspection and food tasting, and maintaining a database of these activities to be submitted to the Nodal Department.
The memo further directs the District Collector to ensure that supervisory officers at the Mandal, Division, and District levels visit each educational institution to monitor the meal preparation process. These officers are expected to sample the food daily, as far as possible, before it is served to the students.
The report outlined the steps taken in response to the incidents:
- In the case of the incident on November 20, the Head Master and the teacher responsible for the mid-day meals were suspended, and the Vice-Principal was assigned to oversee the preparation of the meals.
- Regarding the incident on November 21, the agency responsible for providing the mid-day meals was replaced, and the state began using cooks from social welfare hostels. Additionally, the entire stock of raw materials used in meal preparation was replaced.
- For the incident on November 22, a technical team, along with the District Manager from Civil Supplies, was dispatched to examine the quality and preparation methods of the rice used in the meals.
The Court has now directed the state to submit the reports from both the state committees and those formed under the PM Poshan Scheme within six weeks.
Cause Title: Keethineedi Akhil Sri Guru Teja v. The Union of India
Appearance:
Petitioner: Advocate Prabhakar Chikkudu
Respondent: Additional Advocate General Sr. Mohammed Imran Khan, Parismita Saikia, and Gadi Praveen Kumar
