Asaduddin Owaisi urges to increase honorarium for mid-day meal workers; writes letter to Dharmendra Pradhan

NEW DELHI: Asaduddin Owaisi, leader of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) wrote a letter to the education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, highlighting the poor honorarium and working conditions of 25 lakh cook-cum-helpers under the PM POSHAN (mid-day meal) scheme. Owaisi pointed out that these workers, mostly women, receive a monthly honorarium of just Rs 1,000, which has remained stagnant since 2009.

In his letter, Owaisi emphasized the need for urgent action, stating that the current remuneration is insufficient to meet the basic needs of these essential workers. He argued that increasing the honorarium and improving working conditions would not only provide fair compensation but also ensure a liveable wage for those who play a crucial role in the nation’s education system by preparing meals for millions of schoolchildren.

Request for increase in honorarium and benefits

As per Owasisi, after deductions for the PM Pension Scheme, the cook-cum-helpers working for the PM POSHAN scheme are left with only Rs 810. In the letter, Owaisi requested an increase in the honorarium to Rs 3,500 per month and urged for introducing additional benefits such as paid leave, health insurance, and retirement benefits.

"Cook-cum-helpers should be extended additional benefits such as paid leave, health insurance and retirement benefits. These steps would be immensely beneficial to over 25 lakh Cooks-Cum-Helpers, mostly women, who are working under the scheme. It would ensure fair compensation, and a liveable wage to these essential workers of our education system," read the letter.

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Owaisi highlighted the issue on X, stating, “Imagine that you cook food to feed India’s poorest children. Imagine that you are paid Rs 810 per month every month and that your wages have not increased since 2009.” He further added, “What’s the use of having the Prime Minister’s name on the scheme if the people responsible for its success aren’t even compensated by the government properly?”.

PM POSHAN scheme

The PM-POSHAN scheme is a centrally-sponsored scheme that covers all school children from classes 1 to 8 in government and government-aided schools. It also been extended to students in balvatikas or pre-primary. As per the official website, the PM Poshan scheme benefits approximately 11.80 crore children attending 11.20 lakh schools.

As per the official site, the government has approved the PM-POSHAN scheme for five years, from 2021-22 to 2025-26, with a fund of Rs 54,061 crores from the central government and Rs 31,733.17 crores from State and UT governments. The central government also covers an additional Rs 45,000 crores for food grains, bringing the total budget to Rs 1,30,794.90 crores. Social audits are mandatory in all districts, with special provisions for supplementary nutrition in districts with a high prevalence of Anemia. Students from prominent universities and trainee teachers conduct field visits for monitoring and inspection.