Bangalore:
Bangalore University (BU) has decided to provide mid-day meals to post-graduate (PG) students shortly. The decision by BU authorities is aimed to specifically benefit rural students who commute from far-off distances.
Announcing this at a press conference on Tuesday, BU vice-chancellor N Prabhu Dev said, "Many students, especially girl students, travel from rural areas and they are our focus. They leave home early in the morning and stay in the campus till evening, most of the time without food. This forced us to start the programme."
To avoid misuse of food, the university has decided to collect a nominal fee that will cost Rs 4 for general category and Rs 2 for those belonging to SC/ST category. "We thought of providing the food free of cost, but then many people advised us to charge a nominal fee to avoid misuse," Dev said.
However, this facility is not available for those who stay in BU hostels. Nearly 1500 students will benefit from the programme. The beneficiaries will be registered and identity cards will be issued to them to prevent misuse.
BU has appointed a four-member committee which will negotiate with various organisations including Akshaya Patra Foundation about the catering.
However, BU authorities have already finalised the menu. According to Prabhu Dev, their idea is to provide ragi balls, rice, sambar, buttermilk and raw vegetables.
Officials from Dharwad University who were present said, "Even we are planning to provide mid-day meal for PG students in our campus for which we are working out the criterion."
Copyright restricted. Under license from www.3dsyndication.com
Announcing this at a press conference on Tuesday, BU vice-chancellor N Prabhu Dev said, "Many students, especially girl students, travel from rural areas and they are our focus. They leave home early in the morning and stay in the campus till evening, most of the time without food. This forced us to start the programme."
To avoid misuse of food, the university has decided to collect a nominal fee that will cost Rs 4 for general category and Rs 2 for those belonging to SC/ST category. "We thought of providing the food free of cost, but then many people advised us to charge a nominal fee to avoid misuse," Dev said.
However, this facility is not available for those who stay in BU hostels. Nearly 1500 students will benefit from the programme. The beneficiaries will be registered and identity cards will be issued to them to prevent misuse.
BU has appointed a four-member committee which will negotiate with various organisations including Akshaya Patra Foundation about the catering.
However, BU authorities have already finalised the menu. According to Prabhu Dev, their idea is to provide ragi balls, rice, sambar, buttermilk and raw vegetables.
Officials from Dharwad University who were present said, "Even we are planning to provide mid-day meal for PG students in our campus for which we are working out the criterion."
Copyright restricted. Under license from www.3dsyndication.com
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world