COURT ON ITS OWN MOTION ON THE BASIS OF NEWS ITEM TITLED "SCHOOL SHUT, NO MID-DAY MEAL, CHILDREN IN BIHAR VILLAGE Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A news item titled "School shut, no mid-day meal, children in Bihar village back to work selling scrap" was published in the Indian Express, dated July 6 2020.[1] The article highlights the plight of children in the District-Bhagalpur, Bihar for non-availability of mid-day meals due to shutting of the schools and Anganwadi centres amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

(2.) According to the news item, ever since the lockdown, families and children who come from poor socio-economic backgrounds are facing economic hardships and as a result are unable to put food on the table. Children who are most prone to malnutrition are the worst sufferers of the ongoing pandemic. This is on account of shutting down of the Anganwadi centres and suspending the supply of mid-day meals to children under the various schemes rooted by the Government. As per the news item, a sum of Rs.114.21 to children from classes 1-5, and Rs. 171.17 to children from classes 6-8 is being remitted directly into the bank accounts of the parents. Incidents were reported where no money stands remitted into the bank accounts of parents since April 2020. For earning, many families, including young children, are being forced into garbage collection or begging.

(3.) The news item reads thus: