NGO files petition to ban junk food in schools

NEW DELHI - In an effort to encourage healthier eating habits in children, an NGO here has filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Delhi High Court to ban the sale of junk food and carbonated drinks in and around schools across the country.

“On the one hand, children are taught in the classroom about nutrition and the value of a healthy lifestyle, but on the other hand we continue to make junk food available to them,” Uday Foundation’s co-founder Rahul Verma said in a statement.

“Banning junk food and carbonated drinks in schools will set new standards for healthy food that will make our kids feel better, grow better and learn better and it will improve the nutrition quality of school meals,” he added.

The petition also asks the respondents - the Delhi government, Delhi’s education department, the human resource development ministry, health ministry and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) - to formulate a comprehensive canteen policy so that only healthy food is available in schools.

It also asked for banning the sale of junk food within 100 yards of a school campus.