early times report
Anantnag, Dec 11: Around 3000 Anganwadi centres in Anantnag and Kulgam districts including the one in Minister of Social Welfare, Sakina Itoo's constituency are without nutrition supplies for the past one month.
The Anganwadi programme was started by the Government of India in 1975 as part of the Integ-rated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). It is a grass root level programme that reaches out to women in rural areas and urban slums, to educate them on matters of basic health and hygiene, nutrition, pre-natal and post-natal maternal, childcare and child rearing.
However, in Jammu and Kashmir the program hasn't been successful as compared to other parts of the country because of the slow work culture prevailing among the officers in the said department. 2128 Centres of Anantnag and 1167 Centres of Kulgam district are facing acute shortage of nutrition supply from last one month due to the delay in finalizing contract rates, official sources revealed.
They also revealed that even some of the centers in rural areas haven't received the nutrition supply of October.
Locals especially women in the rural areas are critical of the department as the Aaganwadi workers have locked the centres and advised parents against sending their wards to the centres.
Parveena Banoo, 37, said, "From last one month our children aren't receiving any kind of nourishment as the Aaganwadi worker told us that there is no supply in the Centre."
Early Times received similar kind of reactions from different villages during past seven days. CDPO Bijbehara also confirmed that every centre of her project was facing acute shortage of nutrition supply from last one month. "There is no doubt that the centres in my project are without nutrition supply", she said.
Program Officer Anantnag, who is holding the charge of Kulgam district also, informed that she was aware of the situation and the nutrition supply will resume within next two days. "Finalizing of contract rates caused shortage of nutrition supply in centres but we did it and hopefully supply will resume to the centres within two days", he said.
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