What about SHGs?

Akshay Patra Foundation has its eyes now on Goa after they submitted a strategic partnership proposal to the government to supply mid-day meals in schools across the State. Akshay Patra has been providing mid-day meals to over 13,000 schools across 11 states in the country.
To anyone's mind the first question that would pop out is, why should the government think of Akshay Patra in place of the Self-Help Groups? There are arguments on both sides of the fence. The SHGs have been at the receiving end in terms of poor quality of food. There have been a series of complaints from children and parents across the State that the meals provided are not up to the mark. The quality of food was found to be sub-standard and children at several places refused to take meals, more specifically in city areas. Parents were forced to give tiffin boxes to their wards, resulting in huge wastages. There are a couple of cases where students have suffered stomach upsets, besides complaints of food-poisoning too.
Askhay Patra promises nutritious food and top hygiene, but at a huge price. Their proposal means that the government has to provide land of 1.5 acres each (land will be based on right to use on a long term basis). It will also have to spend Rs 25 crore to set up 2 kitchens, one in North and another in South Goa. There is also a requirement of 40 vans which works out to over Rs 7 crore, besides recurring costs on yearly basis. If the cost per meal is worked out, the government is currently paying Rs 7.26 per upper primary student and Rs 6.81 for each primary student. On the Akshay Patra menu, government will have to shell out Rs 10.92 per meal, without factoring in the grain and cash subsidy.
SHGs have grounds to defend the quality of food against the costs. If the government is serious about quality food then rates cannot be at these levels. When a bread costs Rs 4, you can't expect a meal in under Rs 7. Having said that, SHGs too need to answer why they prefer to fight so hard to be in the game? Why would they protest and literally force the government to think in their favour if there were no margins? Why are they even ready to wait up to 6 months for their payments if they are not making money? Why have the SHGs been subletting their contracts?
Akshay Patra has laid out its plan on the table. But the proposal if approved will literally mean the end of the road for Self Help Groups that have been providing the meals all these years. The fine print of the proposal clearly states that the existing Self-Help Groups, cooks/helpers and other staff should be absorbed by the government in alternate jobs and that the Foundation will bring in their own staff. It is very clear that there is no role for the SHGs in the Akshay Patra plan.
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar while speaking on the floor of the House had said the scheme is to provide proper nutrition to the children and that the interest of the SHGs would be protected. The government should explain how it will employ the members of the 105 SHGs across the State which includes cooks, drivers and helpers. There should have been training for all these groups on the kind of menu that needs to be prepared so that there is uniformity in food production. Six schools in Goa have made their own arrangements with the help of Parent-Teacher Associations. Meals have been prepared within the school campus and supervised by the school heads for quality and hygiene. A proposal for SHGs to work within the campus could have been explored.
Attempts to promote social integration and have a model which provides local cuisine and jobs in the area would be defeated with the entry of Akshay Patra. Moreover, Cujira cannot be a trial ground without the logistics in place and certainly not before the government makes it clear how it's going to accommodate the self-help groups. You cannot apply the ‘kam zalem, voiz melo' formula on the people who have been on the job for so many years.