‘Why are mid-day meal workers going hungry?’ asks MP Hooda; Seeks minimum wage of Rs 15,220, regularisation and jobs for workers hit by school mergers
Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda today backed the demands of mid-day meal workers, urging the Haryana government to regularise their services and pay them at least the minimum wage applicable to unskilled workers in the state.
Girish Saini
Oct 7, 2026 08:31
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Rohtak, October 7, 2026: Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda today backed the demands of mid-day meal workers, urging the Haryana government to regularise their services and pay them at least the minimum wage applicable to unskilled workers in the state.
A delegation of the Mid-Day Meal Workers Union met Hooda and submitted a memorandum highlighting their grievances. “Those who cook food for others should not be forced to go hungry,” Hooda said, calling the workers’ demands justified.
He said the meagre honorarium paid to the workers was unfair amid rising inflation. He also demanded that workers who had lost their jobs following the merger and closure of schools be reinstated or adjusted in other schools at the block or cluster level.
Deepender said mid-day meal workers should be regularised and their monthly remuneration raised to at least Rs 15,220, the current minimum wage for unskilled workers in Haryana. He also backed the union’s demand for a Rs 30,000 monthly wage, saying the workers perform skilled duties.
The workers delegation said cooks were paid an honorarium for only 10 months a year, unlike other Education Department employees who receive payments for all 12 months. It demanded that the honorarium be credited directly to bank accounts by the seventh of every month.
Other demands include a Rs 2 lakh retirement benefit, higher uniform allowance, free treatment and compensation for workplace accidents, at least Rs 5 lakh compensation to dependants in case of death, and free Ayushman cards for all workers.
The workers also sought six months’ paid maternity leave, at least two days’ leave every month, annual health check-ups and coverage under ESI and PF. They demanded Internal Complaints Committees under the POSH Act in schools to ensure a safe working environment.
The union further sought expansion of the mid-day meal scheme to children above four years of age and students up to Class XII.
Deepender Hooda said the government should address the workers’ grievances at the earliest. He added that the Congress would raise the issues of the working class “from the streets to the legislature”.
