Bharatpur (Chitwan), Dec 21:
Neither slippers on the feet nor warm clothes on the body in the shivering cold season. Children belonging to Chepang community are studying in the National Primary School at Jinglau of Kalika Municipality-10 in Chitwan.
Some children come to the school on a hungry stomach. Lately some Chepang children have stopped turning up to school with the suspension of the government-sponsored midday meal programme.
Ram Lal Chepang, a teacher of the school, said the Jinglau students have been deprived of accessing midday meal for over one and a half months.
Even the school management and local government are not being informed of the suspension of the midday meal.
School head teacher Khumraj Bhatta however claimed distribution of midday meal has ot been halted in the school.
“I told school teachers to ask children’s parents for midday meal for now. The government-granted money has been deposited in the school’s account. I told them that disbursement will be made after observing attendance”, the school head teacher said.
On the other, Teacher Chepang said no parents have the capacity to accommodate mid-day meal for children so there is no option but to smoothly regularize the programme.
He claimed the suspension of the programme has direct bearing on the education of the Chepang children.
Gopal Chepang, a local, commented that the children here have been deprived of midday meal for the past two months. He termed it unfortunate for the school to discontinue the programme for which government provided resources.
Kalika municipality ward 10 chairperson Narjung Praja said directive was issued to the school management committee and head teacher for smoothly running the midday meal programme at the school.
Rastriya Samachar Samiti (RSS)
