Maharashtra Teachers Protest Food Licence Rule for Mid-Day Meals

The Maharashtra Rajya Shikshak Sena on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding reconsideration of the requirement for school principals involved in serving mid-day meals to obtain a food licence. In Mumbai, members of the teachers' organisation held a peaceful demonstration at the Brihanmumbai Education Inspector's Office, Western Division, at Ismail Yusuf College Campus in Jogeshwari East. Similar protests were held outside Zilla Parishad offices across Maharashtra. The organisation's district units were also asked to submit copies of a memorandum addressed to Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Tukaram Munde to the respective district Chief Executive Officers. Principals, teachers and non-teaching staff participated in the agitation, which was described by the organisation as a peaceful democratic protest. The teachers' body has demanded that the authorities reconsider the licensing requirement for schools serving mid-day meals and take into account the additional administrative burden it could place on school heads.