More than 50% didn’t get nutrition under ICDS in Jharkhand

Context:

• More than 55% did not receive Supplementary Nutrition under Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) in Jharkhand even once in the first six months of 2021.
• As per National Family Health Survey-4 data, every second child in the state is stunted and underweight and every third child is affected by stunting and every 10th child is affected from severe wasting and around 70% children are anemic.

Relevance:

GS-II: Social Justice (Welfare Schemes)

Dimensions of the Article:

1. Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) – Govt. Schemes
2. Six Schemes under Umbrella ICDS:

Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) – Govt. Schemes

• Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), a Centrally-Sponsored scheme, is an Indian government welfare programme that provides food, preschool education, and primary healthcare to children under 6 years of age and their mothers.
• The scheme was started in 1975 and aims at the holistic development of children and empowerment of mother.
• The scheme primarily runs through the Anganwadi centers and the scheme is under the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
• Objectives of ICDS are:
  1. To improve the nutritional and health status of children in the age-group 0-6 years;
  2. To lay the foundation for proper psychological, physical and social development of the child;
  3. To reduce the incidence of mortality, morbidity, malnutrition and school dropout;
  4. To achieve effective co-ordination of policy and implementation amongst the various departments to promote child development; and
  5. To enhance the capability of the mother to look after the normal health and nutritional needs of the child through proper nutrition and health education.
• Services Provided by the ICDS are:
  1. Supplementary Nutrition (SNP)
  2. Health & Nutrition Check-Up
  3. Immunization
  4. Non-Formal Education for Children in Pre-School
  5. Health and Nutrition Education
  6. Referral services

Six Schemes under Umbrella ICDS:

1. Anganwadi Services Scheme: A unique programme for early childhood care and development which benefits children in the age group of 0-6 years, pregnant women and lactating mothers.
2. Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana: Provides cash incentive amounting to Rs.5,000/- in three installments directly to the Bank/Post Office Account of Pregnant Women and Lactating Mother (PW&LM) in DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) Mode during pregnancy and lactation in response to individual fulfilling specific conditions.
3. National Creche Scheme: Provides day care facilities to children of age group of 6 months to 6 years of working women for seven and half hours a day for 26 days in a month.
4. Scheme for Adolescent Girls: Aims to empower and improve the social status of out of school girls in the age group 11-14 through nutrition, life skills and home skills.
5. Child Protection Scheme: Aims to contribute to the improvement and well-being of children in difficult circumstances, as well as, reduction of vulnerabilities to situations and actions that lead to abuse, neglect, exploitation, abandonment and separation of children from parents.
6. POSHAN Abhiyaan: Targets to reduce the level of stunting, under-nutrition, anemia and low birth weight babies by reducing mal-nutrition/undernutrition, anemia among young children as also, focus on adolescent girls, pregnant women and lactating mothers.

-Source: Indian Express