The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : A hot meal goes a long way

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Tuesday, Jun 21, 2011
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

A hot meal goes a long way

Staff Reporter

Midday meal programme launched at BBMP-BVB school

— PHOTO: K. GOPINATHAN

WILL HE GET A MOUTHFUL?:Tired of waiting, this little one dropped off before the free midday was served to him at BBMP-BVB public school in

Bangalore: The 150 schoolchildren at the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)-Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (BVB) public school at Sriramapura here were a happy lot on Monday when the midday meal scheme was launched in their school.

Students, all aged between four and six, giggled in anticipation of the first meal provided by their school.

Their excitement was palpable as, unmindful of the significance of the event, they banged their spoons on their plates in rhythmic cacophony.

The first to serve the hungry youngsters was yesteryear actor B. Saroja Devi.

BVB representatives hoped the midday meal was an incentive against truancy besides helping the tiny tots improve their concentration. One of the first experimental schools of its kind in Bangalore, the school aims to provide quality affordable education (CBSE syllabus) to children from deprived backgrounds. The students belong to families living below the poverty line, primarily from the seven slums in the area.

Other than the midday meal, the school provides students free uniforms, textbooks and schoolbags besides subsidised fees. H.N. Suresh, Director of Programmes and Projects, BVB, underscored the fact that the poorer sections of society cannot afford to miss education.

N. Ramanuja, BVB chairperson; Dinesh Gundurao, Gandhinagar MLA; and Mathoor Krishnamurti, BVB Director, were present.

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