Kolkata: The grim picture of the under-utilization of budgetary allocation for midday meal scheme in West Bengal became evident from a particular annexure document of the interim (vote on account) budget, presented by the West Bengal Minister of State for finance (independent charge), Chandrima Bhattacharya, on the floor of the Assembly, last week.
For the ongoing financial year of 2026-27, the total budgetary allocation for midday meals in the state was Rs 1,673.12 crore. However, as per the revised estimates for 2025-26, only Rs 320.01 crore (just 19.12 per cent) will be utilized till March 31, 2026.
As per the same budget document annexure, the pictures were equally pathetic for the two previous financial years of 2024-25 and 2023-24.
In the previous financial year of 2024-25, the budgetary allocation for midday meal was Rs 2,299.30 crore. However, the actual utilization during the fiscal year under review was just Rs 241.96 crore (10.52 per cent.
Before that, during the financial year of 2023-24, the budgetary allocation for midday meals in West Bengal was Rs 2,377 crore. However, the actual utilization during the fiscal year under review was just Rs 515.04 crore (Rs 21.66 per cent).
This means that the average percentage utilization of the midday meal budgetary allocation for the three financial years combined is just 16.96 percent.
Probably, keeping the low percentage utilization is the mind; the West Bengal government has reduced the budgetary allocation under this head for the financial year of 2026-27 to Rs 1,150.90 crore, much lower than the corresponding figures in 2023-24, 2024-25, and 2025-26.
“However, this budgetary allocation of Rs 1,150.90 crore midday meal for 2025-27 might not be the final figure and the same might be revised after the new state cabinet presents the full budget after the Assembly elections slated this year,” said a state finance department official.
In June 2025, the Union government expressed concern over sharp decline in the number of students availing the midday meal schemes.
The Union government’s Department of School Education and Literacy had also sought report from West Bengal government in the matter, stating this as the prime reason for increasing school dropouts in the state.
(IANS)
