**Executive Summary**
This document addresses the quality and implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) Scheme across India, formerly known as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme. It outlines the measures taken by the Government of India and State/UT governments to ensure the effective utilization of funds, quality of meals, and monitoring of the scheme. The answer specifically addresses actions taken up to December 8, 2025, and covers budget allocations for FY 2025-26.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Scheme Overview:**
* The PM POSHAN Scheme provides hot cooked and nutritious meals to children in Bal Vatika (just before class-I) and classes I to VIII in government and government-aided schools.
* It covers approximately 11 crore children in over 10.35 lakh schools across India.
* The overall responsibility for providing hot cooked and nutritious meal to the eligible children lies with the State Governments and Union Territory Administrations.
* **Financial Allocations (FY 2025-26):**
* Government of India allocated Rs. 12,500 crore.
* State/UT share is approximately Rs. 8,500 crore, including additional funds for cook-cum-helpers and supplementary nutrition.
* Foodgrain allocation by the Government of India is 24.15 lakh MTs, costing around Rs. 9000 crore.
* Total overall allocation exceeds Rs. 30,000 crore, including more than Rs. 21,500 crore from the Government of India.
* **Quality Control Measures:**
* Detailed guidelines have been issued to States/UTs to improve implementation.
* Schools are instructed to procure Agmark quality and branded items.
* Training is provided to cook-cum-helpers.
* Members of School Management Committees (SMC), including at least one teacher, are required to taste meals before serving.
* Food samples must be tested by Government Food Research Laboratories or accredited laboratories.
* Food Corporation of India (FCI) is responsible for providing the best available quality food grains.
* Inspection by State officials is mandatory to ensure effective implementation, quality, and hygiene.
* **Monitoring and Accountability:**
* States and UTs have established specific monitoring mechanisms.
* The Public Financial Management System (PFMS) is used to transfer and monitor funds.
* States/UTs are required to conduct Social Audits in at least 20 schools or 2% of the schools in each district.
* States/UTs conducted social audits in 32,664 schools across the country.
* States/UTs have conducted inspections in 9.78 lakh schools in the year 2024-25 and 8.21 lakh schools in the year 2025-26 (upto October).
* States/UTs have conducted 25,389 testing of meals in the year 2024-25 and 21,074 in the year 2025-26 (upto October) in accredited labs across the country.
* An Empowered Committee, Programme Approval Board (PAB), State Steering-cum-Monitoring Committee, and District level Steering-cum-Monitoring Committee have been implemented.
* **Karnataka Update:**
* No cases of faults or food poisoning were reported under the PM POSHAN Scheme in Karnataka during the last 2 years.
**Impact Analysis**
**States/UTs**
* **Impact:** Responsible for the implementation, quality, and hygiene of the PM POSHAN Scheme. Required to adhere to detailed guidelines and monitoring mechanisms.
* **Action Required:** Ensure the procurement of quality food items, conduct social audits, perform regular inspections, and maintain accurate financial records through the PFMS system.
**Schools**
* **Impact:** Must procure quality items for meals, provide training to cook-cum-helpers, and ensure SMC members taste meals before serving.
* **Action Required:** Follow established guidelines for food preparation and quality control.
**Children (Beneficiaries)**
* **Impact:** The scheme ensures they receive a hot cooked and nutritious meal.
* **Action Required:** None
**Food Corporation of India (FCI)**
* **Impact:** Responsible for providing the best available quality of food grains.
* **Action Required:** Maintain the Fair Average Quality (FAQ) parameters in the food grains supplied.
Key Entities Referenced
Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) Scheme: A Centrally Sponsored Scheme providing hot cooked and nutritious meals to children in schools.
Ministry of Education: The ministry responsible for overseeing the PM POSHAN Scheme.
Food Corporation of India (FCI): Responsible for making available good quality food grains.
Karnataka: The state where the number of reported cases of faults and food poisoning in the Mid-Day Meal programme were enquired.
Public Financial Management System (PFMS): The system introduced by the Government under which State Government opened State Nodal Agency (SNA) accounts.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-1178
ANSWERED ON- 08/12/2025
Quality of Mid-Day Meal
1178. Dr. K Sudhakar:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) whether any steps have been taken by the Government to ensure periodic inspection to
ensure the quality of the Mid-Day Meal programme in the country, if so, the details thereof;
(b) the details of steps taken by the Government to ensure that funds granted for the Mid-Day
Meal programme are properly utilised by schools; and
(c) total number of reported cases of faults and food poisoning in the Mid-Day Meal
programme in the State of Karnataka during the last two years?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)
(a) to (c): Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) Scheme is one of the
foremost rights based Centrally Sponsored Scheme implemented in partnership with the States
and Union Territories (UTs) for providing one hot cooked and nutritious meal to all children
studying in Bal Vatika (just before class-I) and classes I to VIII of Government and
Government-aided schools. The Scheme covers about 11 crore children in more than 10.35
lakh schools in all the States/ UTs. The overall responsibility for providing hot cooked and
nutritious meal to the eligible children lies with the State Governments and Union Territory
Administrations. For FY 2025-26, budget allocation for the PM Poshan Scheme is Rs. 12,500
crore by Government of India and the State/ UT share as per the sharing pattern is around Rs.
8,500 crore including additional funds for Honorarium to Cook-cum-Helpers and
Supplementary Nutrition items. The foodgrain allocation by Government of India is 24.15 lakh
MTs which costs around Rs. 9000 crore. Thus overall allocation for the PM Poshan Scheme
for FY 2025-26 is more than Rs. 30,000 crore including more than Rs. 21,500 crore made by
Government of India.
The Government of India has issued detailed guidelines to improve the implementation
of the scheme to all the States/UTs. These guidelines are available on official websitehttps://pmposhan.education.gov.in. These guidelines, inter-alia, provides for instructions to
schools to procure Agmark quality and branded items for preparation of meals, training to
Cook-cum-Helpers, tasting of meals by members of School Management Committee (SMC)
including at least one teacher before serving the hot meal to children. Further, it provides for
testing of food samples by Government Food Research Laboratory or any laboratory accredited
or recognized by law to ensure that the meals meet nutritional standards and quality. The Food
Corporation of India (FCI) is given responsibility for making available food grains of best
available quality, meeting the parameters of Fair Average Quality (FAQ). Under the PM
POSHAN Scheme, inspection by State officials is mandatory to ensure effective
implementation, quality, and hygiene. States and UTs have established specific monitoring
mechanisms.
Public Financial Management System (PFMS) system has been introduced by the
Government under which State Government opened State Nodal Agency (SNA) accounts. The
funds released by Central Government are transferred to SNA account which ensures
comprehensive monitoring and efficient usage. In the beginning of the financial year the 1st
instalment of the Central share is released not more than 25% of the amount earmarked for
State for the financial year. Further 2nd, 3rd and 4th instalments of Central Share are released
after expenditure of 75% of the total available funds in the SNA account and compliance of the
conditions of previous sanction.
As per the extant guidelines of the PM Poshan Scheme States/UTs are required to
conduct Social Audit in all districts in at least 20 schools or 2% of the schools, whichever is
higher for each district. The responsibility for taking action and ensuring compliance on the
Social Audit findings rests with the State/ UTs. States/ UTs have conducted social audits in
32,664 schools across the country. Further, the States/ UTs through their designated officials
have conducted inspections in 9.78 lakh schools in the year 2024-25 and 8.21 lakh schools in
the year 2025-26 (upto October). The State/ UTs have conducted 25,389 testing of meals in the
year 2024-25 and 21,074 in the year 2025-26 (upto October) in accredited labs across the
country.
The scheme also provides elaborate monitoring mechanism i.e. Empowered Committee
under the Chairpersonship of Hon’ble Union Education Minister, Programme Approval Board
(PAB) under the Chairpersonship of Secretary (DoSE&L), State Steering-cum-Monitoring
Committee under the Chairpersonship of Chief Secretary, District level Steering-cum-
Monitoring Committee under the Chairpersonship of District Collector. The PM Poshan
Guidelines provides a District Level Committee under the Chairmanship of Senior Most
Member of Parliament (MP) of the district to monitor the scheme on quarterly basis.
During the last 2 years no cases of faults and food poisoning have been reported under
the PM POSHAN Scheme (previously known as Mid-Day Meal Scheme) in the State of
Karnataka.
*****