HC for honour in honorarium paid to midday meal workers

The High Court of Karnataka on Monday orally observed that the midday meal cooks prepare meals for others, but the government had brought them to a state where they were not able to cook for themselves due to the measly remuneration paid to them.

“There should be some honour in the honorarium,” observed the court when it was informed that the women midday meal workers were being paid a paltry sum of Rs 2,600 to 2,700 per month as wages.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari was hearing a petition filed by Nowhera Shaik, a social worker who has moved the court seeking directions to the authorities to give minimum wages to the women workers involved in the midday meal scheme.

The bench observed that the demand for Rs 3,000 per month by the workers seemed like a “pittance of a sum” and directed the government counsel to ask the government to act on this.

The government counsel, in his response, said the wages of these bisi-oota (midday meal) workers were increased to Rs 2,600 for cooks and
Rs 2,700 for head cooks from the earlier wages of Rs 1,000, following a protest staged by them.

The petitioner said the midday meal workers were being paid less than the daily wagers of the government, who earn up to Rs 500 per day.

She said the women mid-day meal workers belong to either SC/ST or OBC category and they face a lot of hardships in life.