Karnataka drops eggs from mid-day meals menu, instead milk will be provided

Instead of eggs, Karnataka Government has decided to supply milk to the children of Government schools across the State along with mid-day meals.

Announcing the Government’s decision to drop eggs from the menu for mid-day meals, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy said the farmers, who owned cows in the State, would benefit from the Government’s decision to provide milk to the students.

Kumaraswamy also pointed out that there was a surplus production of milk in the State, which is the second highest producer of milk in the country. The Government’s decision to provide milk to the students will create an additional market for the dairy farmers, he said.

The Chief Minister’s announcement to drop eggs from the mid-day meals menu and instead provide milk was made soon after the Pontiff of Suttur Math Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Swamiji appealed to the Government to withdraw its move to provide eggs to students.

However, a few hours before the Chief Minister’s announcement, a Cabinet meeting was held in Bangalore to discuss the raging controversy over supply of eggs with mid-day meals. The Cabinet decided to entrust Primary and Secondary Education Minister Basavaraj Horatti to find a final solution to the controversy.

Horatti will study the menus of mid-day meal scheme in various parts of the country, besides holding talks with parents and teachers and come to a final decision before January 26. Till then, Horatti said, the Government had issued a circular to suspend the supply of eggs to the children.

The Chief Minister’s announcement on supplying of milk instead of eggs has been welcomed by Jain Sangha, vegetarian groups and animal rights outfits. But, a host of other organizations like Karnataka State Backward Classes Welfare Forum and Dalit Sangharsha Samithi have criticized Kumaraswamy’s decision and accused him of succumbing to minority opinion.

Quoting the findings of a recent survey carried out by the Education Department in Karnataka, the Karnataka State Backward Classes Welfare Forum and Dalit Sangharsha Samithi said more than 5 million students out of 5.3 million students in the State had favoured eggs with mid-day meals.

The Government should not succumb to the views of “upper class” Hindus, who have traditionally questioned the “eating habits” of lower classes, said President of the Forum Shivaramu.