“Will you be okay if this is done to your children? Will you feel good? We need eggs and bananas. You do whatever you want,” questions a young girl in a viral video.
The thunderous speech– which the above statements are a part of– was given by a young girl from a government school in Karnataka. The reason for her anger? Religious leaders in the state have time and again spoken out against the mid-may meals provided in government schools and have demanded that meat and eggs be banned completely thus reinforcing a vegetarian diet.
The young girl’s speech has taken social media by storm. Aside from nutritionists and other health experts, anti-caste activists have also dubbed the decision to remove eggs from mid-day meals to be a strain of Hindutva which focuses solely on “pure” vegetarian food.
Continuing her tirade, the girl warns, “We will come to your mutt (religious institutions) and eat eggs there. Do you want that? We need bananas and eggs. Not one. We will eat two. Who are you to tell us?”
“We have eaten eggs and bananas, showered and prayed to and donated to your mutt. Then why do you eat with our (donated) money? Throw away the money we donated. Or else give it back to us, we will eat,” she further remarks.
Explaining the ordeal of the students, the student states “You do not know the plight of the poor. We go to government schools because we do not have money. There is poverty in our homes, don’t think otherwise.”
Background of the speech:
The Karnataka government had introduced eggs for students in Mid-day meals, owing to malnutrition and anemia levels in students of seven districts of the state, as per the National Family Health Survey.
The scheme that was introduced for the period of three months between December to March 2022, which covers 46 out of 101 school days, is being opposed by Lingayat groups such as the Basva Dal.
Thankfully, the government has decided to stick with its decision despite opposition.
The decision was taken based on a registration process and after clearance from the parents of students who desired to eat eggs as a part of their mid-day meals.
“From December 1, 2021, to March 30, 2022, 14,44,322 students in government and aided schools in seven districts will be given eggs or bananas for those who don’t consume eggs. Students in classes 1 to 8 will receive 12 eggs/ bananas in a month on school days at a cost of Rs 6 per egg or banana,” a circular from the Primary and Secondary Education Department had said.
Out of Rupees 3,953.14 lakh set aside for the scheme, 60 percent of the cost is being borne by the Union Government whereas the state invests the rest.