Telangana Launches Breakfast Scheme for Students as Schools Reopen

Government schools across Telangana reopens today after the summer vacation, ushering in the 2026-27 academic year with a major welfare initiative aimed at improving student nutrition and learning outcomes. The state government, led by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, has launched a breakfast programme for school and junior college students while also expanding the midday meal scheme to Intermediate students for the first time.

The ambitious initiative will eventually benefit nearly 22 lakh students , from pre-primary classes to Intermediate, studying in government educational institutions across the state.

In the first phase, the breakfast programme has been introduced in 1,302 institutions , including 1,269 government schools and 33 government junior colleges . A total of 1,44,610 students will receive nutritious breakfasts six days a week, from Monday to Saturday. The government plans to gradually extend the programme to all government schools and junior colleges through a network of centralised kitchens.

To support the expansion, 39 centralised kitchens are being established across Telangana's 33 districts at an estimated cost of Rs 299.90 crore . Seven existing kitchens are being modernised, while the remaining facilities are being newly constructed. The state government will bear 70 per cent of the infrastructure cost , with partner voluntary organisations contributing the remaining 30 per cent. The Telangana Educational Welfare and Infrastructure Development Corporation will oversee implementation.

The state is expected to spend around Rs 720 crore annually on the nutrition initiatives. This includes Rs 540 crore for the breakfast programme and Rs 180 crore for milk and additional nutritional supplements . A further Rs 56 crore has been earmarked specifically for Intermediate students.

As part of the nutrition package, students will receive milk on three days a week and ragi malt on the other three days . Children from pre-primary to Class 5 will be provided 75 ml of milk , while students from Classes 6 to 12 will receive 100 ml .

The programme is initially being implemented through voluntary organisations, including the Hare Krishna Movement Charitable Trust in several districts and Manna Trust in Hyderabad and Medchal-Malkajgiri.

In another landmark decision, Telangana has extended the midday meal scheme to first- and second-year Intermediate students in government junior colleges. Beginning with 33 colleges, the programme will eventually cover all 430 government junior colleges , benefiting nearly 1.7 lakh students .

The weekly breakfast menu includes dosa, millet idli, puri with mixed vegetable kurma, bonda, idli and upma served with chutney or sambar. Students from pre-primary to Class 5 will receive 150 grams of food , while those from Classes 6 to 12 will receive 200 grams per serving.

The government expects the expanded nutrition programmes to improve student health, classroom concentration, attendance and overall academic performance , while strengthening enrolment and retention in government educational institutions.