Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay launched the expansion of the Perunthalaivar Kamarajar breakfast scheme on the 22nd. The scheme was expanded to benefit students studying from 1st to 8th standard in government schools and government-aided schools in Tamil Nadu. In this situation, today 36 government school students who had breakfast in Kottaiyur, Tiruvallur district, have been admitted to the hospital.
In a statement issued by AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran regarding this matter, ``Should more be spent on advertising the Perunthalaivar Kamarajar breakfast scheme than on the cost of the scheme itself? — Public welfare schemes ruined by the TVK government’s obsession with publicity! The news reports that 36 students who drank breakfast after a lizard fell into it at the government school in Kottaiyur, Tiruvallur district, have been admitted to the hospital due to ill health are deeply shocking.
A few days ago, 11 students were affected after eating food into which a lizard had fallen at the Melakandai Panchayat Union Middle School near Madurantakam in Chengalpattu district. Now, a similar incident has happened again, exposing the government's negligent attitude. The fact that a lizard fell into the breakfast served to students on the very second day after the expansion of the Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme not only highlights the poor hygiene prevailing in the kitchens of government schools, but also raises serious questions about the safety of students' lives.
The morning meal provided to ease the hunger of poor and underprivileged students studying in government schools has, due to the TVK government’s negligent attitude and excessive obsession with publicity, turned into poison that endangers students’ health and lives, according to the parents and relatives of affected students. The deplorable conditions of government schools continue, with dilapidated school buildings, kitchens operating in unsafe conditions, and toilets that are unusable.
However, the School Education Minister’s habit of speaking unnecessary stories and ornate, rhetorical lines raises the question of whether he has still not stepped off the debate stage. Moreover, what answer does the TVK government have to the criticism that the cost of advertisements published on the front pages of newspapers in various states and in various languages to promote the Perunthalaivar Kamarajar breakfast scheme, which was expanded by Chief Minister Mr. Joseph Vijay on the 22nd, is actually higher than the amount allocated for the scheme itself?
Therefore, I urge the TVK government and its Chief Minister, Mr. Joseph Vijay, to ensure that the students who have been hospitalized after consuming food into which a lizard had fallen receive proper treatment, and that the breakfast provided to students in government schools across Tamil Nadu is served only after quality testing.