Pay of midday meal workers late, missing

The cooks earn below Rs 2,000, which too is delayed by months.

By Anoushka Sawhney

Meerut (U.P.): Munesh Devi, who works as a midday meal cook-cum-helper (CCH) in the Upper Primary School in Teharki village near Meerut is the sole breadwinner of her family. “My husband has a breathing problem, and my son gets seizures. All of my income goes in buying medicine for my husband.”

Munesh Devi serving food to children.

Out of 24.95 lakh mid-day meal CCHs, around 65 per cent are paid less than Rs 2,000 a month, as per a report in The Indian Express. Around 3.93 lakh CCHs were not paid in Uttar Pradesh in 2021.

Three CCHs, including Devi, cook food for 150 children in the school. Their work includes cleaning the

kitchen and washing the utensils.

“First, we used to get Rs. 1,000 and now it’s Rs. 1,500, which also is not enough,” said Devi.

She said her salary is often delayed by six-seven months, which causes difficulty in

running the house.

“We work all day here, and even then we don't get paid.”

Devi said she last got her salary 15 days after Diwali. When she does not receive her salary, she borrows money to run her family.

“There is no support from the government,” she says.

Balbiri and Parvesh, who work in a Primary School in Teharki, have similar stories to narrate.

Two weeks after Diwali, Balbiri got Rs. 6,000, and Parvesh got Rs. 7,500.

“If the payment comes on time, then we can use it to buy medicines and other essentials,” said Balbiri.

“The principal informs us when the money comes in our account since we don’t have a

phone,” said Parvesh.

According to the report, the monthly income of the midday CCHs in Uttar Pradesh remains

below Rs 2,000. However, in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, it is Rs. 9,000 and Rs. 12,000, respectively.

Rasida, who has been working for 15 years in the Composite Vidyalaya in Khirwa Jalalpur, U.P,

cooks food, along with four others, for 800 children.

Many problems are there in the house, “there is not even a lihaf (blanket).”

“What is happening in Rs 1,500,” said Rasida. She said that five months have passed and she

has not received even a single penny.

The CCHs say they cannot sustain themselves for long under such circumstances.