Within weeks, Bengal government rescinds order allowing Akshaya Patra to serve midday meal to schools in 4 districts

In one of the first decisions taken by the BJP government after the party came to power in the state, it was decided to hand over the responsibility of providing midday meals to schools in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area to ISKCON. (File photo)

Three weeks after giving Akshaya Patra Foundation, an NGO linked to ISKCON, the responsibility of providing midday meal to schools in four districts – Howrah, Purulia, North 24 Parganas and Purba Medinipur – the BJP government in West Bengal has now rescinded the order.

A September 11 notification, issued by Paromita Roy, Joint Secretary, State Education Department, to its officials in the four districts, read: “In accordance with the decision taken by the competent authority, I am directed to withdraw the approval of the Akshaya Patra Foundation vide memo No. 284-ES(PMP)/Genl-09/2026 dated 21.08.2026 for providing midday meal under PM-POSHAN in the areas as mentioned in the said Memo. No further action on this may be taken.”

In one of the first decisions taken by the BJP government after the party came to power in the state, it was decided to hand over the responsibility of providing midday meals to schools in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area to ISKCON – the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

However, the decision ran into controversy over providing vegetarian meals to students. Since August, Annamrita Foundation has been providing midday meals to about 500 schools in Kolkata under the PM-Poshan (Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman).

On August 1, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari launched the new meal menu by performing a yajna. However, as the government faced criticism over providing vegetarian food to growing kids, it decided to provide eggs separately to the students.

A petition was also filed in the Calcutta High Court against the government’s decision to hand over the midday meal scheme to ISKCON. Later, ISKCON wrote a letter to the plaintiff seeking relief from that case. In the letter, the organisation said that it was in no way associated with any work of distributing mid-day meals in schools under the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area or in any part of West Bengal.

It said that neither the “Annamrita Foundation” nor the Akshaya Patra Foundation were linked to its governing body. “The management board and the board of trustees of those two organisations and the management committee of ISKCON are legally completely separate. There is no similarity or mutual involvement between their activities and responsibilities. Therefore, the two can never be considered as the same organisation,” it said.

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However, an official from the School Education Department said that ISKCON and Annamrita Foundation and “Akshaya Patra Foundation are separate but related.

“They were not ready to do such a big thing, and when the government started giving eggs twice a week separately, it increased the cost of midday meals. Therefore, the government was forced to withdraw the order in the four districts,” the senior official said on the condition of anonymity.

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Atri Mitra is a highly accomplished Special Correspondent for The Indian Express, bringing over 20 years of experience to his reporting. His work is characterized by deep regional knowledge and a focus on critical administrative and political developments, establishing strong Expertise and Authority in his domain. Experience  Current Role: Special Correspondent, The Indian Express. Decades of Experience: Over two decades of extensive reporting experience, primarily covering administration and political news. Geographical Focus: Holds significant reporting experience from West Bengal, Bihar, and the North-East, providing a comprehensive understanding of the socio-political landscape in these regions. Key Coverage: Has dedicated more than ten years to covering administration and political news, with a keen focus on political developments in West Bengal. Electoral Reporting: Demonstrated a commitment to crucial political moments, having covered the 2009 Lok Sabha election and 2010 assembly elections during his time at Anandabazar Patrika, and the 2019 Bihar Lok Sabha election while working with News18-Bangla. Career Foundation: Began his career at the leading vernacular daily Anandabazar Patrika, where he worked for more than fifteen years, including a three-year stint as the Bihar correspondent. Education Advanced Degree: Holds a Master's degree in Economics from Rabindrabharati University, providing an analytical framework for his political and administrative reporting. Undergraduate Education: Holds a Bachelor's degree from Calcutta University. Prestigious Alumni: His educational background includes attending esteemed institutions: he is an alumnus of St. Xavier's, Kolkata and Ramakrishna Mission Asrama, Narendrapur. Atri Mitra's decades of dedicated reporting, substantial focus on political and administrative beats, and solid academic credentials make him a trusted and authoritative source for news and analysis from Eastern and North-Eastern India. ... Read More

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