AP News: Nara Lokesh Inaugurates Andhra Pradesh’s First Smart Kitchen in Kadapa

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Minister for Human Resource Development Nara Lokesh inaugurated Andhra Pradesh’s first “Smart Kitchen” in Kadapa on Monday, marking a significant reform in the Mid-Day Meal program. The initiative is aimed at delivering hot and nutritious meals to government school students in a more efficient and transparent way.

Serving Thousands of Students

From this newly established kitchen, meals are being prepared and supplied to 12 government schools, reaching nearly 2,200 students every day. The kitchen has been designed to ensure that the food served is fresh, hygienic, and consistent in quality. Lokesh highlighted that this model will be replicated across the state to strengthen the nutrition program for school children.

Technology-Driven Monitoring

One of the key features of the Smart Kitchen is its integration with mobile technology. Every stage of the process—cooking, food processing, packaging, and delivery—is monitored in real-time through a mobile app. This ensures accountability and allows authorities to track whether meals are reaching students on time and in the right quantity. Lokesh noted that such systems reduce leakages and improve trust in public services.

Focus on Cost Efficiency

While addressing the gathering, Lokesh emphasized the low-cost model on which the Smart Kitchen has been built. He said the government is focused on scaling up such initiatives without creating additional financial burden, ensuring that more Smart Kitchens can be set up across Andhra Pradesh. “This is a step toward combining technology with welfare to provide better services for our students,” he remarked.

The launch of the first Smart Kitchen is being seen as a milestone in public service delivery. Educationists and parents welcomed the move, saying that well-monitored and nutritious meals would have a direct impact on student health, attendance, and academic performance. If expanded across districts, the initiative has the potential to benefit lakhs of students, giving a new dimension to Andhra Pradesh’s education and welfare programs.