Around 100 villagers and students of West Singhbhum district in Jharkhand held a protest at the district headquarters on Saturday against the supply of ‘tasteless’ mid-day meals from the centralised kitchen.

The villagers and students from four blocks — Chaibasa Sadar, Khuntpani, Tantnagar and Jhinkpani — of West Singhbhum district held the agitation under the aegis of Khadya Suraksha Jan Adhikar Manch (an NGO espousing the cause of food security) near the district collectorate with the demand to stop the centralised kitchen system for mid-day meals and revert to the old system of cooking the mid-day meal at the school itself.

The centralised kitchen is run by the Annamrita Foundation.

Jundiya Savaiya, a student from Chitimiti village in Tantnagar block, said that earlier when food was prepared in the school, it was served hot and fresh and the food was tasty. Even green vegetables were also available. But the food in the central kitchen is tasteless and does not have green vegetables.

Ramchandra Majhi, a food security activist associated with the Manch, said that between September and November 2023 they had conducted a survey in 42 schools of 23 panchayats of the district.

“In the survey, students of all the schools had said that earlier, the quality and taste of the mid-day meal prepared by the cook in the school was better than the food served now from the centralised kitchen. The survey also revealed that earlier when the food was prepared in the school itself, children used to eat more. Now it has become common for children to throw away the food because of poor quality and taste,” Majhi said.

Food activists also revealed that schoolchildren were not getting two eggs per week regularly because the foundation did not provide eggs and the schools did not have the means to provide eggs. “The report was given to the deputy commissioner after which an investigation committee was formed. But no action has been taken so far,” said Siraj Dutta, one of the activists.