Bhopal Hospital’s Rs 33 Daily Meal Raises Concerns Over Food Quality

Concerns have been raised over the food budget allocated to patients at Bhopal’s Jai Prakash (JP) Hospital, where the cost of providing all three daily meals reportedly amounts to just Rs. 33 per patient, significantly less than the daily spending on cattle and prison inmates across the state.

Patients at the hospital received a modest lunch of potato-cauliflower curry, thin green dal, a small portion of rice, four chapatis, and two cucumber slices, served together on a thali. According to Hindustan Times, with breakfast and dinner included, the total expenditure per patient remains at Rs. 33, raising questions about the adequacy, nutritional value, and overall quality of meals being provided in a government-run healthcare setting. “We are providing food at a cost of Rs. 33 per day, which includes salaries of the staff,” said the canteen in-charge at the JP Hospital.