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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay interacts with school students during the launch of the expanded breakfast scheme in Chennai. (Image: Google)
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay on Tuesday launched the expanded version of the state’s school breakfast programme, increasing its coverage among students across government and government-aided schools. The scheme has been renamed the ‘Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme’ in honour of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Kamaraj, who introduced the first midday meal initiative for school children in 1956.
The expanded programme aims to provide morning meals to a larger number of students studying in Classes 1 to 8 across the state.
The initiative was initially launched for 1,14,095 students from Classes 1 to 5 in government primary schools. The programme was later extended to urban areas, including schools under corporations, municipalities and town panchayats. In June, CM Vijay announced plans to include students from Classes 6 to 8 under the scheme.
With the latest expansion, the government aims to benefit around 15.3 lakh additional students across 15,454 government and government-aided schools.
During the launch event in Chennai, Chief Minister Vijay had breakfast with school students and visited classrooms. He also interacted with children as part of the programme’s inauguration. The state government has allocated Rs 217.63 crore for the scheme in the current financial year, increasing the overall budget allocation to Rs 724 crore.
The launch event also witnessed a political controversy after videos showing police checking schoolbags of students attending the programme surfaced on social media. The incident triggered criticism from the opposition DMK, with party spokesperson questioning the need for such checks and raising concerns over the security arrangements.
The controversy added a political angle to the launch of the expanded welfare programme, which focuses on improving nutrition support for school-going children.
The breakfast initiative is aimed at encouraging school attendance, supporting child nutrition and ensuring that students receive a healthy start to their school day. The Tamil Nadu government has highlighted the programme as part of its broader efforts to strengthen welfare measures for students across the state.
