Now Reading: Millet lessons to enter Pratapgarh govt schools, target malnutrition
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Millet lessons to enter Pratapgarh govt schools, target malnutrition
Pratapgarh government schools will introduce millet lessons after Independence Day to combat malnutrition. The agriculture department has trained 450 teachers under the School Curriculum Programme at block-level BRC centres from August 12…
The Story in Brief
Pratapgarh government schools will introduce millet lessons after Independence Day to combat malnutrition. The agriculture department has trained 450 teachers under the School Curriculum Programme at block-level BRC centres from August 12 to 14, with 50 teachers from each block. Teachers will educate students and parents about the nutritional and agricultural benefits of millets (Shree Anna) and encourage farmers to take up millet cultivation. Currently, millets are grown on 456 hectares in the district, producing 2,265 quintals annually. A millet processing centre set up in Prayagraj at Rs 95 lakh is helping farmers market value-added products like biscuits and cookies.
The Indian Opinion
The push for millets in schools sounds progressive, but the real work starts after the lesson plan. Nutrition campaigns often fail when they stay on paper and don't change what families eat. With small farmers already cultivating 456 hectares, the missing piece is reliable market access for value-added products. The processing centre in Prayagraj is promising, but one unit for an entire district is thin. The concrete test will come in a year: has millet consumption actually risen in Pratapgarh households, and do malnutrition figures improve in the next district health survey?
Source: hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
