LUCKNOW: In compliance of the directives issued by Central government, Uttar Pradesh government has decided to give food security allowance and the ration to the children of primary and secondary schools regulated by UP Board under Mid-Day meal scheme-2015 for the entire duration of lockdown and summer vacations combined from March 24 to June 30, 2020. The government order in this connection was issued on Saturday.
This decision of the state government would benefit around 1.80 crore students of primary and secondary schools across the state.
As per the GO issued on late Friday evening, the students would be given the ration and conversion cost for a 76-day period. The parents of each primary school child will be given Rs 374 and basic school child Rs 561 as conversion cost directly in their bank accounts. The amount would be credited directly into the account of parents of the students through RTGS.
The order says that the conversion cost would be paid as per the rate of Rs 4.48 per day per child in primary schools and Rs 6.71 per day per child in basic schools from March 24 to March 31, 2020, as fixed by the Centre.
From April onwards, the conversion cost was increased to Rs 4.97 per day per child for primary schools and Rs 7.45 per day per child of secondary schools. “So it would be paid accordingly,” said a senior official in the primary education department.
For the payment of conversion cost, block education officers would furnish the hard copy of the data of students present on Prerna portal to the respective principals. The students’ details would have the name of the parent, mobile number and their bank account number, IFSC code, and name of the bank so that the
money could be transferred to the bank directly.
Moreover, under the Mid-day Meal Scheme 2015, each student of primary school would be given 7.6 kg ration and each student of the basic school will get 11.4 kg ration through the local PDS shop. “For this, the school principal will have to issue a voucher to the parents of the students,” said the order issued by
Principal Secretary, Revenue, Renuka Kumar to all the District magistrates across 75 districts of the state.
As per the order, school principals would call 2-3 parents at a time to the school and handover the ration kit while following the norms of social distancing.