
CHENNAI: The city corporation has replaced the evening snack of boiled chickpeas served in corporation schools — for students in classes 10, 11 and 12 — with a mix of other packaged snacks that include biscuits, tea cakes, barfis, boiled peanuts, avul (flattened rice) and boiled black chickpeas.
While corporation officials attributed the decision to students being tired of having chickpeas every day, sources said that the civic body intends to avoid the hassle of cooking fresh daily and stock up on packaged snacks purchased in bulk from private players. “This way, fresh food is cooked only on days when boiled peanuts and black chickpeas is on the menu. Most other days will be covered by packaged snacks,” said a corporation school staff member.
According to school staff, currently, the ingredients — raw peanuts and chickpeas — are distributed to the schools at the start of every week, which are then cooked as per the school’s schedule.
Aparna K G, a city-based paediatrician, said that tea cakes and biscuits are not advisable for children in these age groups, especially for those prone to obesity. “Tea cakes, for instance, have no fibre but have high sugar and are considered a high-calorie snack. It is better to avoid giving children such food items since it might lead to obesity,” she said.
Meanwhile, corporation officials maintain that the decision was taken based on feedback from students and teachers. “Children are finding it difficult to have boiled chickpeas every day. With the change in the snack menu, students are much more inclined to attend the special classes,” an official said.
A corporation school headmaster told TNIE that while the students are keen on having a variety of snacks, the manufacturers of these packaged items should be subjected to expert scrutiny.
Under the Right to Food campaign, an informal network of organisations and individuals have opposed the use of private contractors in supplementary nutrition under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme, advocating for freshly-cooked meals instead.