Last month, Maharashtra, India’s wealthiest state, decided to knock off the egg from its mid-day meal scheme, barely a year after it was introduced. The official reason given was financial constraints
What is in an egg? The question may seem incongruous at a time when unprecedented geopolitical turbulence is rocking the world. But come what may, the humble egg firmly retains its pre-eminent place in battles pitting faith against nutrition in India.
Last month, Maharashtra, India’s wealthiest state, decided to knock off the egg from its mid-day meal scheme, barely a year after it was introduced. The official reason given was financial constraints.
In 2023, the state government had budgeted for eggs, once a week, for better nutrition. Since then, there has been a change of guard, and with it, a change in the midday meal menu for Classes 1 to 8.
Recently, the BJP/NDA-governed state put out a directive asking schools which wish to include eggs or sweets in mid-day meals to fund them independently. Apparently, around 40 per cent of parents in the state opposed serving eggs on religio-cultural grounds.
The country's wealthiest state, which still faces significant child malnutrition, claiming it lacks funds for eggs, a valuable source of protein, raises questions, especially when a much poorer state like Odisha has just unveiled plans for a more nutritious mid-day meal scheme for students in government-run schools. Students in Odisha will now get 200 ml milk, enriched with Vitamin A and D, and given as part of their mid-day meal scheme to boost their nutritional intake. Kerala is also in the news. Shanku, a young boy from Kerala, requested biryani and “poricha kozhi” (chicken fry) instead of upma at his local anganwadi. His heartfelt plea to his mother, captured on video, and going viral, has caught the attention of influential figures. The Kerala government says it is actively considering the boy’s request and revising the menu.
We are back to that old, familiar story which pivots around the obsession with who eats what and where.
In today’s world, the obsession comes at a high cost.
India, the world’s fifth largest economy, has millions of undernourished children. Undernutrition impacts not only the physical growth of children but also their cognitive development. Children who are chronically hungry learn less.
According to the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5, 2019-2021), over 35% of children under five in the country are stunted (too short for their age), and 19.3% are wasted (too thin for their height). There are huge disparities between the states, and undernutrition exists among poor as well as rich states. “The continuing high levels of undernutrition are still a major problem in Maharashtra,” says NFHS-5.
Nutritious school meals matter hugely, and the verbal slugfests over eggs cannot be dismissed.
Arguably, eggs are not the only source of protein and a vegetarian meal is not necessarily protein-deficient. But eggs are relatively cheap, have a long shelf-life, can’t be adulterated, and pack a lot of protein. That is why they feature in school meals in most Asian countries. In India, a vegetarian diet which has enough protein and other necessary nutrients is beyond the means of most people.
Those who are protesting against the inclusion of eggs in school meals in the country should travel a bit and see the kind of food that is served in anganwadis and as part of mid-day meals in most government schools in India.
“What is offered is some form of khichdi, which all children get. The quantity of ‘dal’ (lentil, which has some protein) is less. An egg is an add-on. For those who don’t eat eggs, there is usually a banana. Some states give chana (chickpeas). The consensus among nutrition experts is that the quality of animal protein is much better than protein from plant sources. The only way to match animal protein is to offer plant-based protein from a variety of sources. This means different kinds of dal, rajma (kidney bean), nuts like almonds. Obviously, this is more expensive. Milk is an option, but it throws up huge logistical challenges,” points out Dipa Sinha, a well-known development economist who has written extensively about nutrition. Ms Sinha has publicly canvassed for enhanced budgets for anganwadis and mid-day meals. This will not only improve the quality of the food offered to children, and expand coverage, but it will also raise the wages of cooks, anganwadi workers, and helpers, which remain very low, she says.
India has a compelling story to tell when it comes to school meals. Tamil Nadu pioneered India’s mid-day meal, now renamed as PM-POSHAN. That inspired the rest of India and other countries. Today, it is the world’s largest school meal programme. The cooked meal in school has improved attendance, attention levels and learning outcomes. But quality and nutrition content remain extremely patchy. While states like Maharashtra, Goa and Madhya Pradesh have dropped eggs from the school meal menu in recent times, the southern states, which lead in human development, are offering more eggs to children to make sure that they get enough protein. Data presented in Parliament in February 2023 revealed that at least 14 states and one Union territory offer eggs as an option in mid-day meals.
India can learn from itself and from other Asian countries in the neighbourhood. Bhutan now has a “One-Child, One-Egg” initiative, which aims to boost child nutrition in the Himalayan kingdom. Southeast Asia, one of the most dynamic regions in the world, has their own School Meals Coalition. In November last year, the region had the first Southeast Asia School Meals Coalition Summit.
“What is the point of being a member of the G-20 if 25 per cent of our children do not have enough food?” asked Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto at a business forum on the G-20 summit’s sidelines in Rio de Janeiro last November. Indonesia’s new government has just started the Free Nutritious Meal programme to fight malnutrition. The programme, which targets 90 million children and pregnant women, seeks to combat stunting that afflicts 21.5 per cent of Indonesian children below the age of five.
The real issue is not the egg but whether a country is willing to acknowledge an existing problem and how much it is willing to invest in school meals which offer a lifeline to so many poor children and families. Countries around the world are investing in the school meal because they see it as a way of boosting human capital, as critical as investments in roads, bridges, highways, airports.
A nourishing school meal gives children and communities better life chances. It also boosts the overall productivity of the nation. In the long run, “vikas”, or development, hinges heavily on a healthy, educated population.
