By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, December 1. 2024: In a major boost to primary school education in the state, the Odisha government on Sunday hiked the allocation for midday meals to school students.

State Nodal Officer for PM-Poshan Raghuram R Iyer informed the decision of the government to the district collectors on Saturday.

The material cost for primary school students (classes 1 to 5) was increased from Rs 5.90 to Rs 7.64 per meal per student. The cost for upper primary school students (classes 6 to 8) was hiked to Rs 10.94 from Rs 8.82 per meal per student.

The revised cost will come into effect on December 1, he said.

The last revision of the meal cost was carried out in October 2022.

Under the scheme, cooked meals are provided to 44.5 lakh students in more than 51,500 primary and upper primary schools in the state.