Centre seeks report from West Bengal after sharp decline in students availing mid-day meals

The Centre has sought a report from the West Bengal government after official figures showed that more than 40% of students did not avail mid-day meals under the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman scheme in 2024-’25 in the state, The Indian Express reported on Thursday.

Citing the latest minutes of the Programme Approval Board under the scheme, the newspaper reported that 10 lakh fewer students availed the scheme in 2025-’26 as compared to 2023-’24.

The Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman, a centrally-sponsored scheme, is aimed at providing nutritious meals to students enrolled in government and aided schools.

According to the Programme Approval Board, more than 40% of the students enrolled in the scheme did not avail the mid-day meal in 2024-’25 in 15 districts in the state. Cooch Behar had the least coverage at 46%.

The Programme Approval Board also stated that there had been a reduction of 4.01 lakh in students enrolment in the scheme from 2023-’24 to 2024-’25, according to the newspaper. There was a reduction of 8.04 lakh in actual student coverage, it added.

The minutes added that the proposed enrolment for 2025-’26 in the state also dropped by 6 lakh students.

“The PAB [Programme Approval Board] expressed that efforts may be made to cover all the eligible students under the [mid-day meal]...

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