Rice and red chilli powder served to children in mid-day meal, uproar ensues

A controversy has erupted over the mid-day meal of the Upper Primary School of Kothapalli village of Kotagari Mandal in Nizamabad district of Telangana. Here, a mid-day meal agency served rice mixed with chilli powder and oil to the students. When this incident started going viral on social media, the District Education Officer (DEO) investigated. Now BRS Working President KTR has condemned the Nizamabad mid-day meal issue and has sought an answer as to why rice with chilli powder was served to the children.

Chilli powder served when the taste of dal gets spoiled

There are 130 students studying in this school from class 1 to 8. Nizamabad DEO N Durgaprasad, Mandal Education Officer (MEO), headmaster of the complex school and other officials visited Kothapalli on Sunday and conducted an investigation. One of the teachers told the investigating officials that many students had thrown away the dal served with rice after finding it tasteless. They complained about this to their teachers and two villagers present there. Later, when the students came to have lunch, they were served rice with chilli powder and oil by the mid-day meal agency.

Investigations were conducted on complaints from parents

On Saturday, parents had complained that many of their children receiving food were ill. Following their complaint, Nizamabad DEO N Durgaprasad, Mandal Education Officer (MEO), headmaster of the complex school and other officials visited Kothapalli on Sunday and conducted an investigation. A strict warning was also issued to the mid-day meal service providers and they were cautioned not to compromise on the food provided to the children.

Chilli powder was given on the request of the students

Susheela, the organiser of the mid-day meal agency, admitted to the officials that the dal was overcooked and its taste was spoilt. She said that some students were given chilli powder and oil on their request. Admitting her mistake, she accused the teacher-in-charge of always complaining over petty issues. The DEO told media persons that the agency has admitted the mistake and apologised.