The residential schools run by the Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste Development departments in areas covered under Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) have been asked to lift their quota of chicken for the boarders from the designated women poultry co-operative federation.
Of 780 residential schools with boarder strength of over 1.10 lakh, only 150 schools having 30,000 inmates order for chicken supply. This is despite the fact that the Government has made provision for supply of chicken to school as part of the supplementary nutrition.
The Department has implemented the rural poultry farming scheme as a focused livelihood intervention programme for the tribals of 12 ITDAs under special Central assistance to tribal sub-plan areas since 2011-12.
Seven ITDAs are coming under the OTELP (Odisha Tribal Empowerment and Livelihood Programme).
The poultry farming scheme is run with technical support from OTELP and Swonajyoti Women Poultry Cooperative Federation Limited (SWPCFL), Jeypore.
The two agencies are providing backward and forward linkages to the poultry units for sustainable economic development and protein supplement to poor tribals in the backward region.
Though the cooperative federation is producing one lakh birds through poultry cooperative, it has now come to the notice of the Government that only 30,000 school children of 150 residential schools of the department are getting their quota of chicken.
The remaining schools are neither lifting their quota of chicken on weekly basis nor making payment to the cooperative federation in time.
The Department has directed the project administrators of 12 ITDAs to identify the schools which are not lifting their weekly quota and ensure that chicken is supplied to these schools as per their requirement.
The cooperative federation will meet the requirement of chicken of these schools which will pay the bill through account payee cheque once in a fortnight. Transaction in cash has been strictly prohibited.
The district welfare officer has been asked to monitor the quality of chicken supplied to the schools and report to the Government every month. The schools under no circumstances will buy chicken from outside.
“Marketing of chicken to schools will not only ensure quality food to the students but also help the tribal poultry farmers economically,” official sources said.