The Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education, sponsors PM POSHAN centrally. One hot cooked meal will be given to the children attending Government and Government – assisted schools under this scheme. The Program is carried out all around the nation covering all the qualified children without regard to social level or gender.
The main goals of the PM POSHAN Abhiyaan are to solve two of the urgent issues for most children in India, viz. hunger and education by improving the nutritional status of qualified children in Government and Government-aided schools as well as encouraging poor children, belonging to disadvantaged sections, to attend school more regularly and help them concentrate on classroom activities.
Among the several programs under the general “Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS)” is POSHAN Abhiyaan. ICDS also incorporates the Adolescent Girls’ Scheme, Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, and Anganwadi Services Scheme.
Benefits
- Nutrition norms per child per day:
- Primary: Calorie – 450; Protein – 12 gms
- Upper Primary: Calorie – 700; Protein – 20 gms
- Food norms per child per day:
- Primary: Food grains – 100 gms; Pulses – 20 gms; Vegetables – 50 gms; Oil & fat – 5 gms, Salt & condiments – As per need
- Upper Primary: Food grains – 150 gms; Pulses – 30 gms; Vegetables – 75 gms; Oil & fat – 7.5 gms, Salt & condiments – As per need
Under the scheme, children attending pre-schools or Bal Vatika (before class I) in primary schools also receive hot cooked meals, in addition to the 11.80 crore children studying in 11.20 lakh schools from class I to VIII.
Eligibility:
- The applicant must be a citizen of India.
- The applicant must be studying in a Primary or Upper Primary class (Class 1st to Class 8th) in a Government or Government-aided school.
Application Process
- Offline
There is no formal application process. PM POSHAN is available equally to all children who are studying in Government and Government-aided schools. - Documents Required –None required.
- Exclusions: No exclusions specified.
- Sources and References: PIB (Press Information Bureau)