LPG crunch puts strain on mid-day meals for children at schools across India

LPG shortages impact mid-day meal programs in Indian schools, forcing menu cuts and affecting children's nutrition amidst ongoing fuel crises.

Across India, many schools are scrambling to find alternative fuel sources to LPG, such as firewood and induction stoves for their mid-day meal programmes. Schools located in rural areas of States like Odisha and Telangana that already use firewood have been saved from the crisis owing to the shortage of LPG in light of the West Asia conflict. Many schools are cutting down on their daily menu, affecting the nutritional quality of the food being provided to the children.

LPG and oil crisis updates on March 14, 2026

The provision of domestic LPG cylinders to mid-day meal schemes has helped stave off an immediate crisis since the government has officially announced curbs only on supply of commercial LPG. But reports indicate that as schools apply for cylinder refills, the situation may become dicey. The ongoing disruption in LPG import due to the war has coincided with the exam season. This means fewer students in schools and the impending closure of schools after exams is giving relief to education authorities.

Telangana has 24,972 schools. “There are close to 9,000 schools that rely solely on LPG for the mid-day meals programme. Some also have induction stoves,” said Naveen Nicolas, Director of School Education, Telangana. Most of the remaining schools depend on local firewood for meal preparations.

In Hyderabad, meals are supplied from centralised kitchens operated by trusts or NGOs. “All our operations are steam-based and use firewood and briquettes (compressed blocks of coal). LPG use is minimal for the workers, and required stock is available,” said Ramana Reddy, manager at Manna Trust that supplies food to 950 schools.

Odisha currently serves meals to 16,46,497 students out of 38,62,521 enrolled across 50,000-odd schools under the PM POSHAN Scheme. In rural parts of the State, meals are traditionally cooked using firewood, while authorities are beginning to confront a potential fuel crisis in urban pockets.