Sukhadeo Thorat

Girls eating their lunch at a government school in Bawani Khera village, in south central Haryana.

India’s free school lunches can fight — or reinforce — caste discrimination in India

Lifestyle & Belief

On the one hand, India’s school lunch program encourages children from lower-caste communities to enroll in school. And where the program works well, it brings children from different castes together. But in some states, the program is actually used as a tool to reinforce discrimination.On the one hand, India’s school lunch program encourages children from lower-caste communities to enroll in school. And where the program works well, it brings children from different castes together. But in some states, the program is actually used as a tool to reinforce discrimination.