Pune: The state government has decided to overhaul the school meal distribution system for municipal schools by discontinuing the central kitchen system that has been in use since 2019.

The move comes after numerous complaints regarding the quality of meals provided to students from class 1 to 8 in municipal and Zilla Parishad schools across the state.

Previously, meals were supplied through central kitchens, but going forward, school management committees will be responsible for selecting local women’s self-help groups or organizations to provide these meals.

Under the central kitchen system, meals were delivered to approximately 15 lakh students across 500 kitchens. The government had been allocating Rs. 200 crore annually for this initiative.

However, complaints about irregularities in the tendering process, substandard food quality, and failure to meet government guidelines for providing nutritious meals led the government to take action.

In a major reform aimed at decentralizing control and ensuring better oversight, the government will now allow school management committees to appoint local self-help groups or voluntary organizations to handle meal preparation and distribution.

This change is also expected to empower local groups, ensuring that meals are provided in line with government-mandated nutrition standards.

The government has directed that existing contracts with central kitchens will remain in effect only until their scheduled expiration dates. No extensions will be granted.

From then on, the responsibility for meal distribution will shift to the self-help groups selected by the schools. The daily meal cost per student, including the rice provided, will be transferred to the school management committee, which will oversee meal provision.

In addition, new contracts must be signed annually with the selected self-help groups. The school management committees will need to pass a majority vote to finalize these appointments.

Detailed guidelines concerning selection criteria, payment processing, and monitoring of these self-help groups will be issued by the Director of Primary Education.