Bihar tragedy: When well intentioned schemes go wrong

At the time of writing this, 21 children under the age of ten have died after consuming the midday meal provided by the government at their government school in Bihar. Twenty seven others are critically unwell. A better example of the state’s failure, as well as the stark contrast between the idealism of large-scale government schemes, and their abysmal implementation, would be difficult to imagine.

Despite its many accomplishments, the mid-day meal scheme is riddled with the kind of flaws, inadequacies in implementation and corruption that made a tragedy like this almost inevitable. While the final toxicology report is yet to come in, a preliminary investigation has suggested that the food had traces of an organo-phosphate, which is usually used as an insecticide on rice and wheat crops.

“It is believed that the food was not washed before it was served at the school,” said a report in the Hindustan Times . “It was not a case of food poisoning, but poisoning,” said PK Sahi, the Bihar education minister to the newspaper. “It has to be investigated now whether the poison was added intentionally, or there were some mala fide intentions involved.”

It’s hard to imagine what kind of “mala fide” intentions would target eight-year-olds and nine-year-olds. The minister’s weak attempt to distract from the obvious negligence involved here is both laughable and transparent. Research over the years has proven repeatedly that forget nutrition and quantity, the food provided in mid-day meals often doesn’t meet the basic requirement of at least not being fatally harmful to the children who consume it.

The lack of hygiene is widespread. An academic study done by professors from IIM Ahmedabad of primary schools in the city made it evident how the Bihar tragedy was only a matter of time. Keep in mind, the field visits done by these professors was done with prior notice, that is, this is what was found when the food and schools were ready for inspection.

“We observed loading of the food-cans in the tempos, and, were aghast to see workers placing their bare feet on the part-open lids of the cooked food-cans in EllisBridgeSchool (No 6 & 7),” reads the report . “The kitchen was full of flies…worms were also found in the rice.”

Another school, the GomtipurSchool, was just as bad. “While the dining area shed was newly constructed, the floor on which students sat to have their meal was quite dirty. Spilled food liquids from earlier days were not cleaned from the floor properly. Moreover, children were required to wash their plates after the meal by rubbing the playground soil on the plates and then giving a quick rinse. Hygiene factor certainly seemed to be missing,” concludes the report.

Another example is the primary school in Bamhu, Chhatisgarh, where food is prepared in a soot-covered kitchen. Medical studies have found high levels of uric acid in most of the food in schools, which indicates the presence of rodents in the kitchen or the warehouses. Even carcinogenics such as aflatoxins which can lead to liver cancer were found.

The problems also begin at the source. State machinery, as well as the NGOs which valiantly attempt to put the mid-day meal scheme to the best possible use, have repeatedly pointed out that the funds allotted for the food under the integrated child development services (ICDS) are too less, and more in tune with what food prices were over ten years ago. According to an on-ground report done by Governance Now in Nalanda district of Bihar, a sum of Rs22.80 is the daily quota to feed 40 children. “The ground reality is, some 55 paise per child per day cannot buy anything more,” a sevika (worker) of Noorsarai block said to the website. The result is that both quality and quantity are compromised on by the workers and their helpers.

In another report on July 5, a dead snake and insects were found in a mid-day meal in Jaipur. In June, total of 86 students from Mallikarjun High  School, Canacona, Goa, took ill after consuming their midday meal. This came a year after the the mid-day meals provided in the state were deemed as being “ even unfit for animals ,” according to the Goan chief minister. Senseless measures like “making the teacher taste the food first” are apparently the best defenses in the government’s arsenal (something which was probably implemented in Goa, since a teacher is also seriously unwell).

The mid-day meal is well-intentioned, but if such serious problems are shrugged off as inevitable side-effects of a large-scale nutrition scheme, it will only lead to more incidents like Bihar. Forget a food security ordinance, maybe the government should try for a food safety ordinance.