Mid-Day Meal Scheme in India: Current Status, Critical Issues and Challenges

Abstract

This piece of work examines the impact of the midday meal program on body mass index using secondary data on several Indian states. India has implemented the Mid-day Meal Program to improve the enrolment, attendance, retention, and academic success of school-aged children. A significant portion of schoolchildren from lower socioeconomic categories rely on cooked midday meals. This policy change will require the states to prepare against three key parameters—Mid-day-meal ground infrastructure, financial inclusion, and beneficiary identification—to target the beneficiaries. Using secondary govt data, this paper explores the digital readiness of various states and the challenges they face. Also, research highlights the urgent need for the government to intensify its focus on improving Mid-day-meal at various levels in order to reduce the inequality in India effectively. To meet the goals of the Mid-day Meal Scheme, it is important to avoid repetition of the roughly same sort of meal menu