Kozhikode: Nearly 6,000 students from the LP section of 60 government schools in the city limits will be provided with breakfast from November 1. Kozhikode Municipal Corporation’s ‘Samrudham’ scheme to ensure nutritious breakfast for students will be launched by Kozhikode Mayor Thottathil Raveendran at Bilathikulam LP School in City at 9 am. The state government recently proposed the statewide implementation of the breakfast project.
The scheme is being launched this year at a cost of Rs 30 lakh from the Corporation’s Plan Fund. In a regular year, the civic body is expected to spend nearly '80 lakh for the scheme ('9/student). The Corporation is planning to extend the project to UP, High School and Higher Secondary sections too in future. “Each day different items like chappathi, idli, dosa, uppumavu will be served to the students at 9.15 am. The PTA and the School authorities will together make arrangements for the breakfast distribution,” said Kozhikode Corporation Education Standing Committee Chairman Balakrishnan Master.
“Recently a study found that many students, especially from Beach areas, are attending classes after having some oily snacks and no regular and proper breakfast. We hope that the scheme would be a boon for such students,” added the coordinator of the Scheme V.P Rajeevan. Most of the beneficiaries under the scheme are from Government Medical College Campus Higher Secondary School’s LP section- 492 students.
A school-level committee will monitor the breakfast distribution scheme. The monitoring committee includes the Headmaster, PTA President, Mother PTA chairperson, staff representative, school leader, ward councillor and Corporation health inspector. At present the mid-day meal scheme is successfully running in all government schools and besides daily lunch, students are also provided with eggs and milk twice a week. The mid-day meal scheme is funded by the education department while the utensils and space have been given by the civic body concerned.
Don’t hush, talk period: Red Cycle tells students
After using euphemisms to talk about menstruation, even with girls, it was a great leap forward when boys too attended menstrual awareness classes titled ‘Talk period’ for the students of class 9, 10 and 11 of Devagiri C.S.I Public School here on Monday. The gender sensitivity lessons were conducted by an NGO ‘Red Cycle’ in association with the Kozhikode Medical College Students’ Union and was aimed at creating awareness with the audience, both female and male, to help in dealing with gender stereotypes associated with the ‘period.’
Students participate in the awareness programme ‘Talk Period’ at Devagiri CSI public school on Monday.
“There is remarkable improvement among the students in the way they perceive menstruation. Last year, when we asked ‘why it bleeds’ to a 8th standard girl, she broke down. The same girl came up on her own to answer queries this time,” said Arjun Unnikrishnan, Law student and the founder of Red Cycle. Success lay in boys being attentive and not passing comments that would ridicule or make fun of girls.
Boys and girls were made to sit together to have a sense of gender equality. Information about the biological process and menstrual hygiene were discussed in detail. Awareness on eco-friendly sanitary pads was also imparted. Dr. Smiji, Dr. Parvathy (Department of community medicine, Medical college hospital), Arjun Unnikrishnan and Sreya Salim held the sessions. ‘Haiku’ an exhibition raising awareness about menstruation by medical students was also held.
