BANGALORE: If all goes well, students and faculty of government colleges in Karnataka will soon be served midday meals. Subsidized food will be served to students, teaching and non-teaching staff. Chief minister Siddaramaiah announced it at the golden jubilee celebrations of the Government Women Polytechnic College here on Monday.
“Students should be provided good food so that they can concentrate on studies. The food should be rich in protein. While students will pay Rs 5 for a meal, teaching staff and non-teaching staff will pay Rs 15 and Rs 20,” said Siddaramaiah.
In 2011, Bangalore University had introduced midday meals for post-graduate students. The move was targeted specifically at rural students, who commute from far-off places.
Launched by then vice-chancellor, N Prabhu Dev, the scheme was also meant particularly for women students, who travelled from rural areas and were expected to stay on campus till late evening and would end up missing meals.
To avoid misuse of food, the varsity came up with a nominal fee. While students from general category paid Rs 4 for a meal, those belonging to SC/ST category paid Rs 2.
On Monday, the CM also said the polytechnic hostels will be upgraded and equipped with better facilities. “Over 16,000 women graduated from polytechnic colleges. To improve the quality, the Edusat programme will cover all polytechnic colleges across Karnataka,” said Siddaramaiah.
The CM also assured the department of technical education would look into the proposal to upgrade the Women Polytechnic College.
