COLOMBO, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Sri Lankan government has decided to provide lunch for another 1 million school students, cabinet spokesman Bandula Gunawardena said on Tuesday.
He said that the cabinet of ministers on Monday granted approval to the proposal submitted by President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The decision will be implemented immediately, the spokesman said.
"In recent months, there has been a lot of concerns about the nutrition of school children. There were reports that due to the economic crisis, a lot of children come to school without eating breakfast. This initiative will address the concerns," he said.
The Sri Lankan government has already provided lunch to 1.08 million school students, and this costs the government 12 million U.S. dollars annually, he said, adding the cost borne by the government will double as it feeds another 1 million school students. ■
