Finance
Odisha’s state government has prepared a comprehensive framework for the uninterrupted supply of nutrition and health services during emergencies such as pandemics and disasters, with the goal of reducing malnutrition and stunting faster.
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Speaking at a national level conclave on childhood stunting in India here on Tuesday, chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra said that, in addition to strengthening anganwadi centers (AWC) and delivering nutritional food to people’s homes, several measures have been implemented in the state to combat malnutrition and stunting.
“Odisha is the first state to introduce a separate nutrition budget. With around 96.5 lakh families covered under the food security programme, 75,000 AWCs are actively involved in supplementary nutrition and take home ration being carried through SHGs. Fortified rice and millets have been introduced in PDS and supplementary nutrition,” he said.
Mahapatra stated that the problem of stunting and malnutrition is multifaceted, and that a holistic action plan and coordinated efforts among various departments can help contain both health issues.
“We have started collecting household level data on malnutrition and stunting through a robust and reliable method with regular checkup at AWC level. This will help us monitor the health of beneficiaries and outcome of the welfare schemes being implemented for them,” he added.
The chief secretary issued a study report titled “Covid-19 and Nutrition in Odisha: What Does the Future Hold?” The study was carried out by UNICEF with the assistance of the state government. The conclave was organized in collaboration with the International and Food Policy Research Institute, the Odisha government, the World Bank, and UNICEF.
Anu Garg, additional chief secretary of Water Resources, Subha Sarma, secretary of Women and Child Development, Pramod Kumar Merkap, state food security commission, and UNICEF nutrition chief Arjan de Wagt also spoke.
Source:TNE
