Impact of Mid-Day Meal Programme on the Marginalized Children Social Development: Evidences from Mandya District, Karnataka

Abstract

Eradicating Hunger and providing universal education to all the citizens are the biggest challenges in developing countries. Almost all the countries in the world have adopted and implemented school feeding program to school going children in order to eradicate the hunger as well as to attract Marginalised children to schools. India has the largest child-population of the world. Majority of them are disadvantaged and belong to the families which are economically backward. They cannot afford good education and required Calories of food in day. To address this problem 86th amendment of constitution has made free and compulsory education as a fundamental right for all children between the age group of 6-14 years. According to MDG, India has to achieve the goal of universal elementary education by the year 2015 along with the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger. The present study tries to make some contribution towards understanding social profile of the beneficiaries and Social Development Factors of beneficiaries. The study is descriptive in nature and the primary data for the study was collected using structured interview schedule among 150 student and 30 teachers' responds from government and government aided school of Nagamangala, Maddur, Malavally, Mandya (North and South), Panduvapura taluk and Srirangapatna. The study recommends that government and government aided school need to appoint an independent organizer other than the teacher because in those school where teachers have to self-monitor and supervise MDM where independent organizer is not employed MDM, such teacher feel MDM as the distractive force to their teaching activity.