KRISHNAGIRI: Around 250 students of the Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Krishnagiri had to wait for nearly 30 minutes for breakfast on Tuesday after the school ran out of food for the second batch. School headmaster A Nalini told TNIE that 470 of the 676 students in Classes 6 to 8 had opted to receive breakfast under the expanded Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme.
Sweet pongal and kaara pongal were served to 220 students in the first batch. “The first batch found the food to be tasty and ate most of what was cooked, leaving the second batch with very little. But, our teachers and officials arranged extra food from the municipality's centralised kitchen within 30 minutes,” Nalini said.
Krishnagiri municipality commissioner R Sekar said food for 550 students had been prepared at the school, against the 470 students who had opted for the scheme. “However, the shortage happened as students ended up consuming more than usual,” he said.
However, Collector C Dinesh Kumar said an inquiry will be conducted, based on which action will be taken against erring officials.
Officials were instructed to prepare more food than required during the first week, as some students who were initially hesitant to enrol could join the programme later, Kumar told TNIE.
Across Krishnagiri district, the expanded breakfast scheme was launched in 572 government schools, benefiting 51,413 students of Classes 6 to 8. The scheme was inaugurated at the Government Girls Higher Secondary School by the collector and TVK MLA P Mukundhan.