MP Bista raises Parliament query on low mid-day meal fund use
The Statesman | 3 December 2025
Darjeeling MP Raju Bista on Monday flagged serious concerns over the utilisation of funds under the PM POSHAN (Mid-Day Meal) Scheme in Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts.
Raising the issue during the ongoing Parliament session, Mr Bista sought clarity on the implementation status of the centrally sponsored scheme. He also shared the written reply received from Union minister of state for education, Jayant Chaudhary.
PM POSHAN currently covers more than 11 crore children across 10.35 lakh schools nationwide, providing one hot cooked meal every school day from Bal Vatika (pre-school) to Class VIII. For the financial year 2025-26, the Centre has allocated Rs 21,500 crore out of the total scheme outlay of Rs 30,000 crore.
According to the figures placed before Parliament, 1,017 schools in Darjeeling district are benefiting 20,382 children, while 463 schools in Kalimpong cater to 15,056 children under the programme.
Mr. Bista expressed alarm over what he termed a “wide discrepancy” between funds released and funds utilised in the two hill districts.
“Since 2019, more than Rs 77 crore has been approved and released for Darjeeling and Kalimpong. However, I am alarmed to learn that only Rs 48.03 crore has been utilised,” the MP said.
“In a resource-deprived region like ours, I am shocked that the West Bengal government has not been able to utilise the sanctioned funds meant for feeding our children,” Mr Bista said. He urged both the district administration and the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) to ensure full utilisation of central funds.
Infrastructure Progress
The Centre also informed Parliament that infrastructure under PM POSHAN has been expanding steadily. A total of 1,072 kitchen-cum-store units have already been constructed in Darjeeling district and 358 in Kalimpong.