CM Vijay Launches Expanded Breakfast Scheme as Schoolbag Search Sparks Row

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Tuesday launched the expanded Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme, extending the free morning meal programme to students in Classes 6 to 8 across government and government-aided schools.

The expansion will cover around 15.30 lakh additional students in 15,454 schools, according to officials. The government has allocated an additional ₹217.63 crore for the programme in the current financial year, taking its total allocation to ₹724 crore.

Vijay launched the expanded scheme at a government middle school in Gandhi Gramam, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai, where he served breakfast to students and joined them for the meal. He also visited classrooms and interacted with students.

Breakfast scheme now covers Classes 1 to 8

The programme was initially introduced for younger students and has now been extended to the middle-school level. With the latest expansion, the scheme is expected to cover around 34.64 lakh students in Classes 1 to 8 across 44,984 schools, according to state officials.

The breakfast menu includes items such as upma, kichadi and pongal, with millet-based dishes planned twice a week. The government has said the programme is intended to improve children's nutrition and help students attend school without hunger and concentrate better on their studies.

Implementation will vary across urban and rural areas. In Chennai, integrated kitchens operated by the Greater Chennai Corporation will prepare meals, while self-help group members will prepare and serve breakfast in schools in rural areas and adjoining town panchayats.

Schoolbag searches trigger Opposition criticism

The launch, however, was overshadowed by a controversy over police checking the schoolbags of children who had gathered for the event.

A video of the searches circulated on social media, prompting criticism from the Opposition. The DMK questioned the purpose of checking the belongings of schoolchildren attending the chief minister's programme.

The incident has since become a separate political issue, with the Opposition questioning the need for such checks and the government side facing scrutiny over security arrangements at the event.

The reports reviewed do not establish that any prohibited item was recovered from the students during the searches.

Scheme rollout and election code

The expansion was originally scheduled for September 17 but was postponed to accommodate Vijay's official visit to London, according to reports.

The programme will not initially be implemented in Chengalpattu and Tiruppur districts, where the Model Code of Conduct is in force because of upcoming Assembly by-elections in the Madurantakam and Dharapuram constituencies.

The breakfast programme is being presented by the Tamil Nadu government as part of its wider effort to link nutrition, school attendance and learning outcomes. The latest expansion brings older primary and middle-school students into the programme while the political controversy over security checks continues separately.