Students to don roles as diet managers, mess monitors and hygiene monitors at Telangana Gurukul Schools

TGSWREIS empowers students with leadership skills through hands-on food management roles, enhancing real-world experience in a structured environment.

A year after a series of incidents raised questions about quality of food served in hostels run by the Telangana government, and complaints of pilferage and mismanagement of provisions, the Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TGSWREIS) is handing over the management of the messes.

In a unique academic activity, students, eight each from Classes 8, 9 and 10, and nine students from Class 11, on a rotation basis each month, will assume the roles of diet managers, mess monitors and hygiene monitors. And in a given academic year, all the students in a class would complete their role. The programme will begin with the 2025-26 academic year.

Each of the roles with defined responsibilities, according to TGSWREIS secretary V.S. Alagu Varshini, is to nurture students for the future.

“This isn’t just about food management, it’s about nurturing real-world leadership. Our students are learning to manage systems, lead teams, and uphold standards, all within the structured environment of their schools,” she said.

“These duties and responsibilities are not burdensome or affect one’s academics. On average, a student in an assigned month would spend an hour per day on these duties. So, it is 30 hours of life learning in a holistic environment,” she clarified.

For instance, diet managers, who are Class 10 students, ensure delivery of provisions and perishables from the storage to kitchen, they will also check the quality of ingredients, maintain the register, place indent, and call the Phone Mitra helpline in case of any shortage. The diet managers are also the only key holder of the storage room, and even teachers cannot enter in the absence of him/her.

Similarly, mess monitors, who are Class 8 and 9 students will check if all the cooking and help staff are present, cleanliness of vessels and the cooking area, and their overall work is monitored by night stay teachers.