Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Eat and learn: On Tamil Nadu’s breakfast scheme in schools

Eat and learn: On Tamil Nadu’s breakfast scheme in schools

T.N.’s breakfast scheme is a good model for other States to follow

Sometimes the ability (योग्यता) of a government to find resources for a good scheme is only limited by its intent (इरादा). The Tamil Nadu government’s launch of the free breakfast scheme for schoolchildren is an instance (उदाहरण, अवस्था) of a policy initiative with far-reaching consequences (परिणाम, नतीजा, फल) for school education and public health. As Chief Minister M.K. Stalin himself said at the launch of the scheme, provision of free breakfast is not a freebie (A thing given free of cost), but the foremost duty of a government to ensure no child goes hungry. Mr. Stalin framed his words and deeds from the promontory of the progressive (प्रगतिशील) Dravidian model, which promises inclusive growth for all segments of the population. A key element is the welfare (कल्याण, कुशल) of children, which explains Tamil Nadu’s early emphasis (प्रमुखता, ज़ोर) on feeding children in schools. The importance of a daily breakfast as the most important meal of the day is widely acknowledged. Multiple studies across the globe indicate that eating breakfast regularly confers positive outcomes on students, affecting their ability to focus, learn and retain information positively. School performance improves, as do behaviour and cognition (अनुभूति), but a regular breakfast also takes care of diet quality, micronutrient sufficiency, anaemia and height and weight issues in children, and is even believed to sculpt BMI scores for the future. The government has targeted providing schoolchildren an average of 293 calories and an average protein input of 9.85 gm per day. The mid-day meal that is already being provided to students in schools comes up to an average of 553 calories and 18 gm of protein, giving every student who takes the food supplied in school about 846 cal and nearly 28 gm of protein a day. The Centre’s midday meal guidelines prescribe (सलाह देना) between 450-700 cals per child per day, and a protein intake of 12-20 gm per day.

While the proposed menu for the Tamil Nadu government’s breakfast scheme will take care of hunger, the calorific, energy and micronutrient requirements of the children, with a diet rich in local preparations and vegetables, it also has to provide adequate (पर्याप्त) attention to taste and quality parameters. The government, rich with its experience of dealing with the mid-day meal scheme over several decades, must avoid the errors of omission (चूक, छूट, भूल) and commission — including pilferage (चोरी, उठाईगिरी), poor quality of food, delays in sanctioning (प्रतिबंध) funds, and caste-related disruptions — that have been hurdles in its path earlier. Other State governments would also do well to be inspired by Tamil Nadu, which has allowed its intent to triumph over the state of its finances, finding money to fund this very crucial (महत्वपूर्ण, निर्णायक) aspect of nation building — ensuring the growth and development of children.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.Ability (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - योग्यता
English Meaning - Possession of the means or skill to do something.

2.Intent (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - इरादा
English Meaning - Intention or purpose

3.Instance (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - उदाहरण, अवस्था
English Meaning - A case or occurrence of anything.

4.Consequence (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - परिणाम, नतीजा, फल
English Meaning - The outcome of something.

5.Progressive (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रगतिशील
English Meaning - A person advocating or implementing social reform or new, liberal ideas.

6.Welfare (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - कल्याण, कुशल
English Meaning - Health, happiness and fortunes of someone.

7.Emphasis (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रमुखता, ज़ोर
English Meaning - A particular prominence given to something.

8.Cognition (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - अनुभूति
English Meaning - The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses.

9.Prescribe (Verb)

Hindi Meaning - सलाह देना
English Meaning - (of a medical practitioner) advise and authorize the use of (a medicine or treatment) for someone, especially in writing.

10.Adequate (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning - पर्याप्त
English Meaning - As much as necessary.

11.Omission (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - चूक, छूट, भूल
English Meaning - A person or thing that has been left out.

12.Pilferage (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - चोरी, उठाईगिरी
English Meaning - The action of stealing things of little value.

13.Sanction (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रतिबंध
English Meaning - A threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule.

14.Crucial (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning - महत्वपूर्ण, निर्णायक
English Meaning - of great importance.

15.Freebie (Noun)

English Meaning - A thing given free of cost