Correct Answer - Option 1 : physiological need
The Mid Day Meal scheme, which is the world’s largest school feeding program, aims to enhance enrolment, retention and attendance and simultaneously improve the nutritional levels among children.
The objectives of the mid-day meal scheme are:
- Improving the nutritional status of children in classes I – VIII in Government, Local Body and Government aided schools, and EGS and AIE centers.
- Encouraging poor children, belonging to disadvantaged sections, to attend school more regularly and help them concentrate on classroom activities.
- Providing nutritional support to children of the primary stage in drought-affected areas during summer vacation. MDM Scheme.
- Physiological needs are hunger, thirst, and bodily comfort. Because a hungry child has difficulty focusing on learning, many early childhood programs provide breakfast, snacks, and lunches. This fulfillment is done by mid-day meal.
- Many children reach school on an empty stomach. Even children who have a meal before they leave for school get hungry by the afternoon and are not able to concentrate – especially children from families who cannot give them a lunch box or are staying a long distance away from the school. Mid-day meals can help to overcome this problem by preventing “classroom hunger”.
- With a view to enhancing enrollment, retention, and attendance and simultaneously improving nutritional levels among children, the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (NP-NSPE) was launched as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme on 15th August 1995, initially in 2408 blocks in the country.
- By the year 1997-98, the NP-NSPE was introduced in all blocks of the country. It was further extended in 2002 to cover not only children in classes I -V of Government, Government aided and local body schools, but also children studying in EGS and AIE centers.
- Central Assistance under the scheme consisted of a free supply of food grains @ 100 grams per child per school day, and a subsidy for transportation of food grains up to a maximum of Rs 50 per quintal.
Hence, we can conclude that program of mid-day meals in the school for the students, primarily fulfills the motive of physiological need.
