PM POSHAN (Mid Day Meal) | Samagra Shiksha Axom

PRADHAN MANTRI POSHAN SHAKTI NIRMAN, ASSAM

With a view to enhancing enrolment, retention and attendance and simultaneously improving nutritional levels among children, the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (NP-NSPE), popularly known as Mid-Day Meal Scheme, was launched as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme on 15th August 1995, initially in 2408 blocks in the country. From 2008-09 i.e w.e.f 1st April’2008, the programme covers all children studying in Government, Local Body and Government-aided primary and upper primary schools and centres supported under SSA (presently Samagra Shiksha) of all areas across the country. Mid-Day Meal Scheme was started in the State of Assam during 2004-05 financial year. The name of the scheme was changed to Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM-POSHAN) in September, 2021. Children of preparatory class i.e. class just before Class-I in primary schools have been included in PM-POSHAN since April, 2022.

Basics of PM-POSHAN

Cooking Cost: Up to October, 2022, Rs.4.97 per child per day for LP Stage and Rs.7.45 per child per day for UP Stage. Since October, 2022, Rs.5.45 per child per day for LP Stage and Rs.8.17 per child per day for UP Stage. Since December 2024, Rs.6.19 per child per day for LP Stage and Rs.9.29/- per child per day for UP Stage & NCLP

Cost of food grains (rice): Rs.3,000/- per MT.

Transportation cost: Rs.1,360/- per MT.

Honorarium to Cook cum Helper: @Rs.1000/- per month for 10 months in a financial year as approved by Govt. of India and @Rs.500/- per month as additional honorarium for 10 months in a financial year approved by Govt. of Assam

The food and nutrition entitlements of each eligible child under the scheme is given below:

#	Item	Primary	Upper Primary
Nutrition norm per child per day
1	Calorie	450	700
2	Protein	12 gms	20 gms
Food norms per child per day
1	Food grains	100 gms	150 gms
2	Pulses	20 gms	30 gms
3	Vegetables(leafy also)	50 gms	75 gms
4	Oil & fat	5 gms	7.5 gms
5	Salt & condiments	As per need	As per need

In addition to above table, compulsory provision of one egg per week per child was included under the scheme in Assam w.e.f. April, 2021 to meet nutritional requirement of the children and boost immunity (soya for vegetarian children as a substitute of Egg).

Fortified Rice :

Only Fortified Rice is supplied under the scheme since April, 2022.

Fortified Rice Kernel (FRK) contains Iron, Vitamin B₁₂ and Folic Acid as fortificants.

Pre-blended ready-to-use fortified rice will be provided by FCI (Food Corporation of India) in place of normal rice under where in a 50 kg bag, 500 gm of FRK (Fortified Rice Kernel) shall be added i.e. 49.5 kg normal rice shall be blended with 500 gm FRK Fortified Rice Kernel.

There will be a ‘+F’ mark on the bag itself so that fortified rice can be differentiated.

Weekly Suggested Menu: Weekly Suggested Menu was revised in 2024-25

Day

Weekly Suggested Menu

Monday

In case of availability of millet stock in schools, millet-based recipe with Dal and Vegetables (including green leafy vegetables).

In case of non-availability of millet stock or non-supply of millet; then Rice, Dal and Vegetables (including green leafy vegetables).

Tuesday

Khichidi (Rice with Pulses) and Vegetables (including green leafy vegetables)

Boiled Khichidi and Vegetables

Bhuna Khichidi and Vegetables

Wednesday

Rice, Dal, Vegetables (including green leafy vegetables) and Egg (Soya for vegetarian children)

Rice, Dal and Aloo Anda Masala

Thursday

Rice, Dal and Vegetables (including green leafy vegetables)

Rice, Bilahi Tok and Sagwala Dal or

Rice, Bilahi Tok and Sambhar

Friday

Rice, Dal and Vegetables (including green leafy vegetables)

Lemon Yellow Rice, Soya Chap Masala and Dal

Jeera Rice, Faldhari Kofta and Dal

Saturday

Local option with rice, pulses and vegetables (including green leafy vegetables)

Veg. Fried Rice and Dal

Vegetable Tehri and Dal

Standard Operating Procedure Followed in the State

Cooked meal is served to the children after 4^th period on every school day.
If for any reason, there will be less than 4 periods in any School Scheduled Day, then cooked meal is served after last period on that day.
Food and nutrition norms are displayed in a prominent place of every school and must be followed on every school day.
Weekly Suggestive Menu is displayed in all schools.
On every school scheduled day, Head of the Institutions inform the Cook-cum-Helpers about number of children attended the school after taking daily attendance.
Cook-cum-Helpers prepare meal based on number of children attended the schools.
Food grain (rice/millet) is used as per norms and number of children attended the schools and the records of the same are to be maintained by the Head of the Institutions in Daily Stock Register (Food Grains Register).
Head of the Institutions along with Cook-cum-Helpers compulsorily check the stock of food grains and other ingredients before use in order to confirm that no contamination or pests/insects or any other harmful materials are there in the food grains, vegetables and other ingredients.
After arrival in the schools, Cook-cum-Helpers sweep the kitchen-cum-store, wash the dishes & utensils, and check the food grains and ingredients. Then, they wash their hands and wear aprons and head gears.
During entire cooking process, Cook-cum-Helpers must be present in cooking area and cooking process must not be left unattended.
All food items are kept covered with lids.
Salts and condiments are kept in closed containers.
Any teacher and one SMC member or one Mothers Group member must taste cooked meal 30 minutes before serving the same to the students & the schools have to maintain a Food Tasting Register for this purpose.

Status of Implementation during the year 2024-25:
Coverage under the Scheme during the year 2024-25:

Coverage of Schools during 2024-25
Category	Primary	Upper Primary & STCs	Total
Institution	33,876	10,230	44,106
Coverage of Children during 2024-25
Stage	Total Children	Average Children Covered	% of Coverage
Bal Vatika	2,25,180	1,66,463	74
LP	24,24,677	19,69,439	81
UP	12,69,192	10,09,510	80
Total	39,19,049	31,45,412	80

LPG Connections: LPG connections were provided to 2,360 schools of Charaideo, Sivasagar, Kokrajhar, Dima Hasao, Hailakandi, Hojai, Jorhat, Kamrup (M) during the year 2024-25.
Supply of Utensils: 43,081 schools were provided with cast iron cauldrons and best quality stainless steel utensils during the year 2024-25.

Pic: Supply of Stainless Steel Utensils
Kitchen-cum-Stores: Government has sanctioned Rs.23,880.23 Lakh for construction of 5524 units of kitchen-cum-stores during the year 2024-25. Funds amounting to Rs.3,107.84 Lakh have already been transferred to 875 schools of Cachar, Bongaigaon and Barpeta (Cachar: 432 units, Barpeta:255 units & Bongaigaon:188 units). Funds for the remaining 4649 units will be transferred to the selected schools shortly.
Additional Eggs: On every Monday and Friday, additional eggs were served along with compulsory provision of one egg on every Wednesday to the eligible students of the schools (Ka Sreni to Class-VIII) in Tea Garden and Char/Chapori areas, where 2,39,561 children of 2441 schools in Tea Garden areas and 2,20,872 children of 2,085 schools in Char/Chapori areas were benefitted.
Sai Sure Ragi Health Drink: SaiSure Ragi Multi-nutrient Health Drink added with jaggery is served to 4.21 Lakh students of 4878 schools in tea garden and SC dominated areas in collaboration with Sri Sathya Sai Annapoorna Trust, Karnataka. The initiative launched on 09.01.2025.
Millet Based Recipe: Pilot project of serving millet-based item to the children was launched on 10^th January 2025 in convergence with Assam Millet Mission for 78 days. 2465 children of 11 schools in Udalguri district are being benefited.
Introduction of 12 recipes in Weekly Suggested Menu: 12 innovative recipes were included in Weekly Suggested Menu of PM POSHAN during the year 2024-25. 12 suggestive recipes are- Faldhari Kofta, Lemon Yellow Rice, Sambhar, Bhuna Khichidi, Boiled Khichidi, Bilahi Tok, Jeera Rice, Soya Chaap Masala, Veg. Fried Rice, Aloo Anda Masala, Vegetable Tehri and Saagwala Dal.
Training of Cook-cum-Helpers: State level two days Master Trainers’ training for training of Cook-cum-Helpers on 12 innovative recipes was organized in Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology & Applied Nutrition, Guwahati on 25^th and 26^th June, 2024 where two Cook-cum-Helpers from each district along with the District Programme Managers, PM POSHAN of all districts attended. Subsequently, Block level training programs were organized in all 147 blocks, where Master Trainers imparted the same training to two (2) CLRPs (Cluster Level Resource Persons) of Cook-cum-Helpers from each cluster during 2024-25. Later, 33876 out of total 108280 Cook-cum-Helpers were imparted the same training at Cluster level training programmes during 2024-25.
Social Audit: Social Audit of PM-POSHAN was conducted in 932 schools across the state covering all districts. Assam Society for Social Audit, a set up under PNRD, Assam conducted the Social Audit.
Cooking Competition: Cooking Competition of the Cook-cum-Helpers has been conducted in 99 clusters across the state covering all districts. Cook-cum-Helpers of 1485 schools participated in the Cooking Competition.
Additional Honorarium: Govt. of Assam sanctioned additional honorarium @₹500/- per month for 10 months for 1,08,643 Cook-cum-Helpers. Accordingly, all Cook-cum-Helpers received additional honorarium @₹500/- per month along with Govt. of India‘s approved honorarium of ₹1000/- during 2024-25.

Best Practices/Innovation under the Scheme in the State of Assam:

Lemon Revolution:

Lemon is a good source of Vitamin-C, dietary fibre, Citric Acid and Iron. By plantation of lemon trees along the boundary wall of the schools, it will serve the purpose of natural fencing. The produce from lemon trees will be used in mid-day meal.

All schools were instructed vide letter no. SSA-18024(11)/1/2024-MDM-Sarba Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) (I/528139/2024) Dated 16.04.2024to plant lemon trees along the boundary walls of schools so that it can work as natural fencing and the produce can be used in PM POSHAN programme.

Previously, direction for plantation of lemon trees along the boundary walls of the schools was issued to all districts on 12.05.2023.

27,832 out of 44,106 schools planted lemon trees. Out of 27832 schools, 9,056 schools planted lemon trees along the boundary of schools.

Pic: Fencing with lemon trees in a school in Baksa Pic: 1,000 saplings of lemon trees ,West KarbiAnglong

Pic: Sonaram HS School, Guwahati Pic: Lofar LP School, Kamrup (R)

Sabka Prayas- Sampriti Bhojan:

Sabka Prayas-Sampriti Bhojan, a community participation programme, has been initiated under PM-POSHAN by relying on the traditional practice of providing food to people on special occasions such as festivals, anniversaries, birthdays, marriages, and days of national importance etc. in the state of Assam.
Members of the community voluntarily provide nutritious and healthy food to the children as full meal or an additional food items under the initiative.
During 2023-24, instructions were issued vide letter no. SSA-18025(12)/2/2023-MDM-SSA (I/168420/2023) Dated 02.05.2023 to select 100 schools in the district and to undertake certain activities to encourage people to participate in Sabka-Prayas- Sampriti Bhojan. Accordingly, each district selected 100 schools for undertaking certain activities to encourage people to participate in Sabka-Prayas- Sampriti Bhojan. People including teachers and parents of the children were encouraged to celebrate birthdays in schools and to contribute food items.
During 2019-20, hoardings on SampritiBhojan have been installed in two prominent places of all the districts to promote the concept and encourage people to come forward for providing food to children in the schools on special occasions such as festivals, anniversaries, birthdays, marriages, and days of national importance etc.
During the year 2024-25, 90,239 families contributed food items worth Rs.401.95 Lakh (approx) and 30.13 Lakh children of 43,198 schools were benefited under the initiative.

Provision of weekly two additional eggs under Flexibility Component:

On every Monday and Friday, additional eggs are served in the schools of Tea Garden, Char & Chapori areas of Assam along with compulsory provision of one egg on every Wednesday.
Weekly two additional eggs were introduced for the eligible children of Tea Garden areas w.e.f. August, 2023 and for the eligible children of Char & Chapori areas of Assam w.e.f. December, 2023.
2,39,561 children of 2,441 schools in Tea Garden and 2,20,872 children of 2,085 schools in Char & Chapori areas of Assam are being benefitted under the initiative.

Posters with pictorial presentation on different aspects of PM POSHAN:

IEC materials having total no. of 6 posters with pictorial presentation on Do’s & Don’ts in respect of different aspects of Mid-Day Meal Scheme have been provided to all the schools and offices during 2019-20 FY wit

Pages	Contents
1	Norms of PM POSHAN, Weekly Suggested Menu and ARMS
2	School Nutrition Garden
3	Sampriti Bhojan
4	Pictorial poster on Food Safety & Hygiene aspect of implementation of MDMS at schools
5	Pictorial poster on Health & Hygiene aspect to be followed in schools as per contents provided by NHM
6	Pictorial posters related to Disaster Management Information provided by Assam State Disaster Management Authority

The contents as given hereunder-

Pic: Poster on Guidelines and Methodology on School Nutrition Gardens

Pic: Poster on Health & Hygiene Pic: Poster on Food Safety at School Level

Pic: MDMS Norms & ARMS Pic: Child Safety at School Level

Involvement of women self-help groups:

Mothers Groups of the schools monitor implementation of the scheme at school level. They help Cook-cum-Helpers in cooking and serving of cooked meal to the children. They monitor food safety, health and hygiene aspects of Mid-Day Meal Scheme in the schools along with other stakeholders. Mothers Group members also taste cooked meal along with a teacher/SMC member 30 minutes before serving the same to the students.

Pic: Mothers Group in Assam

Dining halls:

Though no funds were provided for construction of dining halls by PM-POSHAN, Assam, with the active involvement and initiatives of the communities, some of the schools in the state of Assam have made very beautiful Dining Halls in the school campus for the purpose of PM-POSHAN.

29 dining halls have been constructed through CSR initiative and community participation.

Pic: Pictures of some dining halls in the schools of Assam

Hand washing facilities:

Assam Provisions for soaps are made available in all schools ever year for hand-washing by children before and after taking mid-day meal.
4,14,64 schools have tap/multi-tap facilities for hand-washing of children.

Pic: Hand-washing facilities in the schools of Assam

Waste disposal facilities:

All the schools of Kamrup and Kamrup (Metro) districts were provided funds for procurement of Garbage Bins in 2019-20. Many schools of Assam have started system for making bio-compost with the waste materials and leftover of food items. This bio-compost is used in the School Nutrition Gardens for producing organic vegetables.

Development of School Nutrition (Kitchen) Gardens:

At present, total 33,904 schools are having SNGs.

Funds for setting up of SNGs have been released to all schools @Rs.1461/- for procurement of tools for kitchen garden on 10.12.2024. Schools have procured the following items for setting up of School Nutrition Garden:

District level committees have been set up in all districts under the chairmanship of DCs and members from all line departments for the purpose. Initiatives have been taken to set up School Nutrition Gardens in the remaining schools in convergence with other line departments. SMCs of the concerned schools were requested to develop School Nutrition Gardens in their own schools with the help of SMC members, teachers, Eco Clubs headed by the Head Teacher/Head Master, enthusiastic students and interested community members. Following instructions were given to all the schools-

Each & every school covered under Mid-Day Meal Scheme must have School Nutrition Garden irrespective of availability of land. Plants may be grown in small containers, cans, jars, discarded earthen pots, wooden peti, ceramic sinks, food tins, bags where land is not available.
Along with the plantation of plants/shrubs of seasonal vegetables of winter & summer seasons, plants/shrubs having vegetables & fruits throughout the year in all seasons and fit in with local food habits should be planted & nurtured. As for example, papaya plant.
The scientific name as well as local name along with nutritional value of each plant/shrub must be displayed properly.
Eco Club, enthusiastic children, SMC Members & interested persons from the community may look after the development of School Nutrition Gardens.
The Head of the Institution is to depute a teacher of his/her school as Nodal Teacher for maintaining & developing School Nutritional Garden in his/her respective school.
A register in this regard is to be maintained by every school which will include columns for recording item-wise total weight of the produce as & when utilized from the School Nutrition Garden. A format for the same is given hereunder-

Pic: School Nutrition Gardens of Assam

Display Board:

Display During 2024-25, districts were instructed vide letter no. SSA-18012/1/2024-MDM-Sarba Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) Dated the 22nd January 2025 to display key information at a prominent place in schools, including entitlements of children under the scheme, the weekly suggested menu etc. in accordance with the Point Nos. 9.1, 9.1.1, 9.1.2, and 9.2 of PM POSHAN guidelines issued by Govt. of India vie DO No: 1- 3/2022-Desk (PM POSHAN) dated 21st December 2022. Ready-to print designs of entitlements of children under the scheme, the weekly suggested menu were provided to the schools for displaying the same at a prominent place in school campus.

Tarpaulin (sitting mat):

Tarpaulin (sitting mat) has been provided to the schools for eating PM-POSHAN in hygienic manner.

Printing of “Guideline on Food Safety & Hygiene at School Level Kitchens”:

Booklet on 12 innovative recipes in English, Assamese and Bengali has been provided to all schools during the year 2024-25.

Guidelines on food safety and hygiene for school level kitchens under PM-POSHAN Scheme have been translated into Assamese, Bengali and Bodo languages and distributed to the schools. PM-POSHAN Rules, 2015 have also been translated into Assamese, Bengali and Bodo languages and printed in the said booklet. Training has been imparted to Cook cum Helpers, President & Member Secretary of the SMCs on food safety and hygiene for school level kitchens and PM-POSHAN Rules, 2015.

Supplementary Nutrition:

Three initiatives have been taken towards providing supplementary nutrition to the children under PM POSHAN, Assam during the year 2024-25 –

Weekly Two Additional Eggs to the Children of Schools in Tea Garden and Riverine Areas.
Serving SaiSure Multi-nutrient Health Drink to the children of schools in Tea Garden and SC dominated areas, &
Pilot Project of Serving Millet-based Items under PM POSHAN, Assam.

Weekly Two Additional Eggs to the Children of Schools in Tea Garden and Riverine Areas:

Weekly two additional eggs were introduced for the eligible children of Tea Garden areas w.e.f. August, 2023 and to the eligible children of Char & Chapori areas of Assam w.e.f. December, 2023 in order to increase attendance of the children and also to improve nutritional status of the same.

Additional eggs are being served under the Flexibilty component of PM POSHAN.

Implementation Details-

Additional eggs are served every Monday and Friday, alongside the compulsory provision of one egg every Wednesday.
Cost of egg is ₹6.50/- per egg.
The following table depicts the coverage of children under the initiative of weekly two additional eggs-

Year	Tea Garden		Char Area		Total
Year	Schools	Children	Schools	Children	Schools	Children
2024-25	2,441	2,39,561	2,085	2,20,872	4,526	4,60,433

SaiSure Multi-nutrient Health Drink to the children of schools in Tea Garden and SC dominated areas:
SaiSure (Ragi) Multi-nutrient Health Mix has a very good nutritional profile, encompassing all the essential macronutrients - carbohydrates, fibers, fats, and proteins, along with noteworthy levels of key micronutrients - vitamins and minerals. It has negligible levels of cholesterol and sodium, to promote heart wellness. In addition, ragi contains considerable quantities of vitamins C and E, to boost immune, skin, and hair health. Being a good source of natural calcium, Ragi strengthens bones in growing children. SaiSure has been designed to specifically meet the protein, calorie, vitamin and mineral requirements, as well as micronutrients required for a growing child. It comprises of Protein, Fat, Cholesterol, Carbohydrates, Minerals, Calcium, Zinc, Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, B12 etc.
Details about pilot project of Serving SaiSure (Ragi) Multi-nutrient Health Mix with Jiggery powder under PM POSHAN, Assam are given below-

Launching: The pilot initiative of serving SaiSure (Ragi) Multi-nutrient Health Mix with Jiggery powder to the students under PM POSHAN, Assam in collaboration with Sri Sathya Sai Annapoorna Trust, Karnataka has been launched on January 9, 2025.

Objectives: The initiative marks a significant step forward in addressing malnutrition. It is anticipated that this intervention will:

Eradicate malnutrition among school-going children.
Improve children’s overall health and well-being.
Reduce school dropout rates in underserved communities.

Target Children: 4.21 Lakh children of 4878 schools in Tea Garden and SC dominated areas of Assam in 33 districts.

Duration: 38 schools days (February and March 2025).
Serving Norms: The drink is prepared using 10 grams of SaiSure Ragi mixed with 10 grams of jaggery, yielding 250 ml of a nutritious beverage for serving to one child.
Requirement and Funding Pattern: For products, ₹2/- per child per day. PM POSHAN, Assam will bear ₹1/- (50% of cost) and Sri Sathya Sai Annapoorna Trust, Karnataka will bear ₹1/- (50% of cost).

Total requirement of Ragi and Jaggery for 38 days is 320044 KG. (160021.80 Kg SaiSure health Mix and 160021.80 Kg Jaggery Powder)

Total Cost: ₹3.20 Crore
Contribution from Annapoorna Trust @50%: ₹1.60 Crore
Contribution from PM POSHAN, Assam @50%: ₹1.60 Crore
Source of Fund for PM POSHAN: Flexibility Component under PM POSHAN

Pilot Project of Serving Millet-based Items under PM POSHAN, Assam:
Pilot project of serving millet-based item to the children was launched on 10^th January 2025 in convergence with Assam Millet Mission.
Beneficiaries & Duration:
2465 children of 11 schools in Udalguri district.
Duration: 78 school days (3 months), per the Academic Calendar.
Implementation:
Two millet-based products: Sweet Mix & Khichdi Mix, served on alternate days.
Each child receives 50 grams of the Finger Millet-based recipe daily before class.
Cost is fully borne by Assam Millet Mission under the Agriculture Department, Assam.

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Downloads


Title	Size	Detail
Annual Social Audit Report (PM POSHAN) 2024-2025	8.16 MB
Report on Sompriti Bhujan	2.26 MB
Social Audit Report - 2022-23	2.06 MB
Social Audit Report - 2021-22	3.21 MB

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