GADAG: This is some sweet deal to improve attendance at school. At Naregal town in Gadag district, a government primary school has been offering sweet dishes to students during mid-day meals for the last two years. And it has borne results with the attendance clocking 100 per cent.
Every day, apart from rice and sambar, one sweet is part of the meals that includes wheat payasa, groundnut holige, laddu, huggi, Mysore pak and jalebi. It costs Rs 2,000 per day to provide the sweets, and town residents have been making donations to take care of the expenditure as it is not covered under the government grant.
The school committee has named the initiative Amrit Bhojan, which has been kept running for the last two years by donors. Already, this month’s entire cost for Amrit Bhojan has been deposited into the committee’s kitty.
This idea to improve attendance was first mooted by the school committee during Sharavana Masa (month) in 2021. As Amrit Bhojan got a good response, the committee continued with it. The school has 307 students — 125 boys and 182 girl — all of whom are attending classes without being absent.
Apart from sweets, the school, which has classes from 1 to 7, also organises sports and moral classes to attract students. Uday S, a Naregal resident, said, “Many students don’t go to government schools as there is a competition for quality education. Providing sweets in mid-day meals is a good step, and it should be adopted in other government schools with the participation of the public.”
School headmaster BB Kuri said, “Amrit Bhojan apart, we also provide good education. I thank the donors for keeping the initiative alive and teachers for ensuring good education to students.”