IMPHAL: Hundreds of Mid-Day meal workers and helpers took to the streets and staged sit-in protests at different district headquarters of Manipur on Sunday as a part of the nationwide protests.
The protestors also submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding, among others, improving their service conditions.
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Over 2000 workers (cooks and helpers) from across Manipur took part in the rallies and in the sit-in protests led by All Manipur Mid-day Meal Workers’ Union (AMMDMWU) president Maibam Amuna.
Their demands included, among others, increase in honorarium of the workers from Rs 1000 per month to Rs 6000 per month, increase on retirement age of cooks and helpers from 60 years to 65 years, and providing retirement benefits to the tune of Rs 2 lakhs.
At the side-lines of the protest and rally at Imphal, the AMMDMWU general secretary Arambam Thoi said that an all-India conference for mid-day meal workers was held at Hyderabad on November 4 and November 5, in which representatives from Manipur also attended.
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The conference decided to stage a sit-in protest on December 11 in every part of the country and AMMDMWU extends support and coordination to the protests.
She said that the honorarium of just Rs 1000 per month received by mid-day meal workers is inadequate for the duties given to them and most of the mid-day meal workers are living below the poverty line.
In Manipur, the mid-day meal scheme started in 2005 and is about to complete in 18 years.
Without mid-day meal workers, the scheme, which is playing a crucial role in promoting the right to education act, would be impossible, she said.
She also tried to draw the attention of the Manipur government to understand the problem and inconveniences faced by mid-day meal workers communities.
The Midday Meal Scheme is a school meal program in India designed to better the nutritional standing of school-age children nationwide.
The program supplies free lunches on working days for children in government primary and upper primary schools, government-aided Anganwadis, Madarssas, and Maqtabs Workers.