Teachers’ job is to teach, not supervise meals: HC

Jul 26, 2013 |

The duty of schoolteachers and principals is to teach students and not to supervise cooking of meals, the Allahabad high court observed on Wednesday, close on the heels of the Bihar midday meal tragedy.

The high court’s observation came as three lakh primary schoolteachers across Bihar boycotted midday meal duties on Thursday saying this interfered with teaching work.
“The duty of teachers and principals of schools is to teach students and not supervise the cooking of meals,” a division bench comprising Justi-ces Shiva Kirti Singh and Vikram Nath observed Wednesday amid questions on whether teaching staff at government schools should be saddled with the implementation of the scheme.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by the Meerut-based UP Pradhana-charya Parishad. The PIL had challenged an order by the district inspector of schools dated June 19 under which the earlier system of NGOs being entrusted with preparing midday meals was scrapped and principals were directed to get the food prepared in their schools under their personal supervision.

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