National Programme
of
Mid Day Meal in Schools
[MDMS]
Annual Work Plan & Budget
2010-11
State : NAGALAND
Mid Day Meal Programme
Annual Work Plan and Budget 2010-11
1. Introduction:
1.1Brief history, objectives and rationale of the Mid Day Meal Programme
National Programme of Mid-Day Meals in Schools (MDM) has been under implementation in the State since November 1995 with the objective of giving a boost to Universalisation of Elementary Education by improving enrolment, attendance, retention and learning levels of children and also to improve the nutritional status of children of the elementary stage. Mid-Day Meal Programme has positive impact on educational advancement and social equity. It also is a means to impart various good habits to children and to educate them about the importance of cleanliness, balanced diet, clean water and related matters.
The State of Nagaland has been taking steps to fully implement the scheme in primary and elementary schools across the State in right earnest keeping the directives of the Hon’ble Supreme Court and as per the Revised Guidelines of 2004 & 2006. The State has already geared up to achieve the objectives by providing hot cooked meals with a minimum of 450 calories and 12 grams protein at the Primary Stage (Classes I-V) and a minimum of 700 calories and 20 grams of protein contents at the Upper Primary Stage(Classes VI-VIII). The approach of the Govt. for implementing the scheme has been to:-
a)Cover all Govt. Primary/Upper Primary Schools, Education Guarantee Scheme Centres (EGSs) and Alternative and Innovative Schooling Centres (AIE) over a period of time with facilities such as the following;
b) Provide Kitchen-cum-store
c)Provide cooking devices.
d)Water supply
e)Develop an institutional structure that involves the community in implementing the programme
1. 2.Process of plan formulation.
The AWP&B for 2010-11 has been formulated as per the guidelines of Govt. of India issued from time to time. The Plan Budget has been prepared strictly on the actual enrolment of students in Primary and Upper Primary stages. Requirement of food grains, cooking cost, transportation cost, construction of Kitchen-cum- store, kitchen devices, cooks’ honorarium have been reflected in the prescribed formats attached.
2.Description and assessment of the programme implemented in the currentyear and proposal for the next year (2010-11)with reference to:
During the financial year 2009-10 , an amount of Rs.992.40 lakhs have been provided by the Government of India . The break up of the provision is reflected as under;
(i)Cooking Cost
a)Primary Stage:- Rs. 683.63 lakhs
b)Upper Primary Stage:- Rs. 205.96 lakhs
(ii) Kitchen devices (Upr.Pry):- Rs. 20.75 lakhs
(iii)MME( Primary& Upper Primary) :- Rs. 21.96 lakhs
(v)Transport subsidy:- Rs. 60.10 lakhs
(vi)Cooks honorarium:- Rs.68.51 lakhs.
Total:- Rs. 992.40 lakhs
The State Government has also provided Rs.102.98 lakhs as 10% contribution share towards the cooking cost for Primary and Upper Primary stages and Rs.300.00 lakhs towards the nutritional support including the Cooks’ honorarium.
For the year 2010-11 an outlay of Rs.3757.83 lakhs is proposed. There is a sharp hike in the proposed outlay due to the revision of rate for cooking cost, construction of Kitchen-cum-store on SOR of the state & also due to the decision of GOI bear 90% of the Cook’s honorarium as per revised norms. Details of requirement of fund are reflected in the prescribed formats attached.
2.1 Regularity and wholesomeness of mid day meals served to children;reasons for programme interruptions, if any.
Cooked meal was served to the students as per the guidelines. No report of interruption was received.
2.2Foodgrains management, including adequacy of allocation, timeliness oflifting, transportation and distribution, and suitability of storage at different
levels.
After receiving the yearly allocation of foodgrains from the Govt. of India, the State Govt. directs the authorised stockist to lift foodgrains in month wise basis. The allocation is divided into 10(ten) equal instalments to be lifted in 10(ten) months starting from April to January. The authorised stockist lifts the foodgrains from FCI go-down, Dimapur and transports the same to respective DIS go-downs monthly. The VECs collect the foodgrains from the concerned DIS go-down. Suitable storages are made available and for which rent is paid from the fund provided by the State Govt. for Mid-Day Meal Scheme (State Contribution/Share). The VECs store the foodgrains in the kitchen-cum-store constructed for the scheme.
2.3System for release of funds provided under cooking costs (Central andState)
(i)Govt. of India (GOI) releases in form of normal sanction to the State Govt..
(ii)State Govt. places the fund with the Department and obtain sanction and release from the State Planning and Finance Department for both the Central assistance and State contribution to the Education Department
(iii)School Education Department on receiving the fund from the State Govt. disburses the same to the DISs in the form of Demand Draft.
(iv)DISs on receiving the fund from the Department, the DISs credit the amount to the respective VEC Account as per their entitlement.
2.4System for procuring cooking ingredients (fuel, condiments, oil, etc.),Commodities, which are centrally purchased and supplied to schools orlocally purchased at school level and rate of cooking cost per child per dayprovided at school level.
The VECs provide cooked meal to the students and for which they are delegated with the power to procure ingredients from the fund received under cooking cost. They are also advised to provide locally available nutritious food items as per the guidelines of the Scheme.
2.5System for cooking, serving and supervising mid day meals in the school
The State Govt. is providing honorarium to the schools to engage cooks under State component. The cooks are preparing and serving the meals under close supervision of the VECs.
2.6Procedure for getting Kitchen shed constructed
In Nagaland all Govt schools are communitized and the amount meant for construction of Kitchen shed to the schools through the concerned DIS’s and works are executed by the VECs by community participation
(i)During 2006-07, Govt. of India released Rs.322.44 lakhs for construction of 537 Nos of kitchen-cum-stores. The construction work is completed.
(ii)During 2007-08, 2nd instalment amounting to Rs.729.00 lakhs for construction of 1215 kitchen-cum-store. The same was released to the respective schools. The construction work is completed.
(iii)During the fag end of 2007-08 an amount of Rs.1.80 lakhs was allocated by the GOI for construction of 3 kitchen-cum-store for 3Upper Primary Schools in 3 EBBs, i.e. in Tobu, Aboi & Noklak which were constructed during the 2nd quarter of 2008-09.
(iv)During the 3rd quarter of 2008-09, the GOI sanctioned an amount of Rs.13.20 lakhs for construction of 22 kitchen-cum-store for Upper Primary and the process of construction is completed.
(v)Water & toilets facilities are being provided to the schools in convergence with the PHE Department.
2.7Procedure of procurement of kitchen devices from (i) funds released under theMid Day Meal Programme (ii) other sources
Kitchen devices are procured through registered contractors and supplied to respective schools through the DIS’s. The Department is contemplating to release the entitled amount to the respective schools through the DIS,so that the materials are purchased by the schools from the market according to their needs.
(i)During 2006-07, the Govt. of India had released Rs.49.93 lakhs for procurement of kitchen devices for 999 schools. Provided to the schools accordingly as per the guideline of GOI.
(ii)During 2007-08, the Govt. of India had released Rs.37.50 lakhs for procurement of kitchen devices for 750 schools. Provided to the schools accordingly as per the guideline of GOI during 2008-09.
(iii)During 2007-08, the Govt. of India had released Rs.2.30 lakhs for procurement of kitchen devices for 46 Upper Primary Schools in EBBs schools. Provided to the schools accordingly as per the guideline of GOI during 2008-09.
(iv)During 2009-10, Govt. of India has released Rs.20.75 lakhs for procurement of kitchen devices for 415 schools for primary and Upper Primary. Sanction already accorded and process pf distribution is in progress.
(v)During 2005-06 & 2006-07, syntax (water tank), cooking gas, cooking pots were provided to 1752 Govt. schools. Plates and cups have been provided to all children covered under the during 2007-08 from the State Component.
2.8Capacity building and training conducted for different categories of personsinvolved in the Mid Day Meal Programme under programmes of SSA,DIETs, etc.
For capacity building, trainings are conducted from time to time under SSA training programme to impart to the VEC members the rational and salient features of the National Programme, the role of different functionaries and agencies at various levels, precaution, preventive and safety measures at various levels, strategies for the effective management of the scheme, importance of cleanliness and hygienic habits, social equity and so on to achieve the objectives of the programme. During 2008-09 under the State Communitisation & SSA programmes, intensive sensitisation/capacity building/awareness training was conducted in both the State, District & Block level
2.9Management Information System at School, Village/ Gram Panchayat,Block, District and State level.
Information regarding receipts of foodgrains, cooking cost, supplementary food items, day-wise meals provided to the students, enrolment, attendance, retention, dropouts and other activities are required to be submitted from the schools/VECs to the concerned DIS on quarterly basis. However, this is an area which requires intensive monitoring and supervision as the required information is not being submitted by the VEC as expected. This information are required to be compiled at the DIS level and forward the same to DEO for onward submission to the Nodal Department. During 2009-10 intensive training was conducted in record and accounts management at all levelsA State level general conference of the VDBs, VECs and Nodal Departments was held from 30th Nov/09 to 1st Dec/09 under Communitisation Programme for sensitisation of flagship- programme which includes the Mid day Meal scheme.
2.10Systems to ensure transparency and openness in all aspects ofprogramme implementation, including inter alia, foodgrains management,ingredients procurement, cooking and serving, appointment of cookingstaff, construction of kitchen sheds, procurement of cooking devices.
A.Directorate office:-
i)The Directorate Office are to maintain proper records and Books of Accounts such as lifting pf foodgrains, release of fund to the VECs through concerned DIS etc.
ii)They are to release the fund to the VECs through concerned DIS only in the form of Demand Draft and shall maintain the records in the Books of Accounts.
iii)They are to monitor and compile the progress reports of implementation submitted by the field officers. The same shall be submitted to the State Govt. for further submission to the Govt. of India as and when required.
iv).They are to conduct periodical Internal Audit of the DIS establishments so as to ensure transparency of its implementation.
B.DIS office:-
i)They are to operate a joint signatory Bank Account with the concerned Administrative officer for implementing the Scheme.
ii)As and when funds are received from the State Nodal Agency (MDM), Directorate of School Education, they shall ensure that the same is released to the respective VECs/Schools
iii)They are also to ensure that the foodgrains are distributed to the VECs/Schools once the same is delivered to the destination by the authorised stockist.
iv).They are to ensure that all payments/transactions are made through cross-cheque and deposited to the concerned VECs/Schools Bank Account to ensure transparency.
v)The DISs are to utilize the service of the SISs under their jurisdiction for better and effective implementation of the Scheme.
vi).They are to submit the half-yearly progress report i.e. in the months of July & November every year to the Directorate of School Education. The report should indicate in detail, both success and short comings of the Scheme with constructive suggestions for effective implementation of the Scheme.
vii)They are to maintain the detailed records such as vouchers, ledgers, APRs, subsidiary cashbook etc. and all the transactions especially for implementation of Mid-Day Meal Scheme.
C.Village Education Committee (VEC/WEC/TEC/UEC)
i)They are to ensure that there is only one VEC in a village irrespective of number of schools in that particular village. The VEC should be constituted as per the Communitisation of Elementary Education Act 2002 and Rules, thereof.
ii)They shall ensure that cooked meal is provided to all the students every school day.
iii)They are to also formulate the Action Plan for effective implementation of the Scheme in time with the guidelines issued by the Govt. of India. They may also decide to provide any locally available nutritional food to the students on the basis of availability of fund/resources.
iv).The VECs are to construct a fire-proof kitchen shed from the fund made available under Central Assistance. The kitchen shed should be adequate for cooking as well as for storing foodgrains and utensils
v)For transaction of money, the Bank Account shall be jointly operated by the VEC Chairman and the Head Teacher incharge of the school, who is also the VEC Member Secretary.
vi.They are to ensure that all the records such as vouchers, register etc for receipt of foodgrains and money are maintained properly.They are to follow the instruction and the guidelines issued by the Department from time to time.
2.11Measures taken to rectify
a) Inter-district low and uneven utilization of food grains and cooking cost
b) Intra-district mismatch in utilization of food grains and cooking cost
c) Delay in delivering cooking cost at school level.
(a)Inter-district low and uneven utilization of foodgrains and cooking cost:- For proper implementation of the scheme through out the state, the Nodal Department (DSE) sends regular information to all DISs regarding timely lifting of foodgrains and release of cooking cost to the VECs/schools.
(b)Intra-District mismatch in utilization of foodgrains and cooking cost:-
To check mismatch between foodgrains lifted and cooking cost utilization, the Department has directed the DISs to compile actual utilization at the school level for onward submission to the Department.
(c)Delay in delivering cooking cost at school level.
On receiving the sanction from the State Govt., the Nodal Department releases the cooking cost to the respective DISs in the form of Demand Drafts which in returns is credited to the VEC Account. On a review of the releases being made to the VECs it has been decided to direct the DISs to release the amount within 30 days on receipt of the amount in their account.
2.12Details of Evaluation studies conducted and summary of its findings.
During 2007-08 & 2008-09, the third party evaluation by the SCERT, DIET could not be conducted. However, the Department of School Education has supervised the progress of Mid-Day Meal Programme in Tuensang and Longleng District by the Nodal Officer(MDM) in the month of September and October for effective implementation of Mid-Day Meal, particularly the kitchen construction. Moreover, during 2008-09 a One Day Orientation cum Workshop organised by the Department of School Education on 20/02/09 at Kohima where 6 DEOS, 23 DIS, 9 Nodal Officers who are the in-charge of Elementary Education in respective district took part in the programme.Senior officers from the Govt. and Directorate level also attended the workshop. Similar workshop/orientation was conducted at districts/EBRC level for sensitization covering all 41 EBRCs. In the workshop all instructional materials, guidelines, policy on Mid-Day Meal, the register for Stock, foodgrains, MDM beneficiary register and cash book is to be explained. The workshop will be attended by the member of VECs, Village Council, youth leader and women representative from the community from each village. It is expectedthrough such mechanism of MDM scheme in the State shall move forward.
2.13 Brief write up on best practices followed in the State
i)Common kitchen has been set up at Bayavu Hill, KohimaTown. A Non-Governmental Registered Society known as “Vimeyu Society” is running the kitchen. At present the kitchen is cooking & serving hot cooked meals to 2500 students of 14 Govt. Schools in the town. A permanent kitchen is being built by the Department, which is in good progress. Once it is completed it will serve the needs of the students of these schools
ii)Naga society is casteless and there is no differentiation amongst students irrespective of their social and economic background.
iii)Students sometimes bring green leafy vegetables from their gardens to supplement the food items.
iv).Under the Agri-Based programme, Agri. Tools are provided to the schools, wherein, local vegetables are grown by the students and are used for preparing meals.