Koppal: Eggs have disappeared from the midday meal menu in several government schools across Kalyana Karnataka over the past week, after suppliers halted distribution citing delayed payments and rising costs.
Disruption Exposes Shortages
The disruption has also exposed shortages of cooking gas and other essential supplies, leaving teachers struggling to keep the nutrition programme running. Under the state government’s midday meal scheme, eggs are served twice a week. However, students in many schools have not received them since supplies stopped.
Suppliers said the government pays Rs 6 per egg, while procurement costs have risen to around Rs 5.40–Rs 5.50. Transportation costs add nearly 30 paise per egg, and after including handling and other incidental expenses, suppliers say the business is no longer viable.
70,000 Eggs Weekly in Ballari
Around 70,000 eggs are supplied weekly to schools in Ballari district alone, and a similar situation prevails across other parts of the Kalyana Karnataka region. Sahadev, an egg supplier for schools in Hosapete taluk, said delayed government payments and rising market prices forced suppliers like him to suspend distribution.
In many schools, bananas have been introduced as a substitute to bridge the cost gap. The disruption has added to the burden on teachers, who are already coping with inadequate infrastructure and irregular supply of essentials.
Teachers Forced to Procure Supplies
In several schools under the Kadaganchi and Khajuri clusters in Kalaburagi district, head teachers and staff are forced to visit distributors to collect LPG cylinders after existing ones run empty. At times, distributors report a shortage of gas or supply only one or two cylinders, compounding the problem. Teachers are spending valuable working hours on procurement.
In one instance, a teacher was seen transporting trays of eggs on a two-wheeler from a town to a village school, highlighting the responsibility placed on teachers to ensure the supply of eggs, bananas and other nutritional supplements.
Although the department provides foodgrains, head teachers are left to manage the purchase of vegetables, procurement of eggs and bananas, arrangement of cooking gas, and coordination with suppliers.
Teachers' Associations Demand Separate Mechanism
Chandrasekhar Nuggali, president of the Karnataka State Government Primary Teachers’ Association, said these administrative and supply-related tasks were taking away time meant for classroom teaching.
Primary and secondary school teachers’ associations have urged the government and the education department to create a separate mechanism to manage the scheme. They have also sought direct delivery of LPG cylinders, eggs, bananas and other essentials to schools.
The associations said children must receive nutritious food on time, but the responsibility for ensuring supplies should not rest solely on teachers, and called for a permanent solution.
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