| J&K govt to transform Anganwari Centres into Model Facilities for children, mothers | | | Early Times Report
Srinagar, July 24: The Jammu and Kashmir government on Wednesday rolled out an ambitious plan to transform the Anganwari Centres into state-of-the-art Model Community Facilities for children and mothers in the state, Principal Secretary of Social Welfare Department, Rohit Kansal said on Wednesday. As part of this programme, unveiled by Mr Kansal at a review meeting of the ICDS here, 50 existing Anganwari Centres in each district would be, in the first phase, transformed through convergence with MGNREGA into Model Anganwari Centres, with upgraded infrastructure and improved amenities like toilets, drinking water and hygiene.
It will be then replicated at other Anganwari Centres in the state, to change the face of the government's 44-year-old children and women-oriented programme, for efficient delivery of the Integrated Child Development Scheme.
Under ICDS, supplementary nutrition is provided to children in the age group of 0-6 years and to pregnant/lactating mothers with main objective to fight the problem of malnutrition.
The meeting was informed that at present, 141 projects are running under ICDS in J&K covering 29599 Anganwari Centres. "Upto June 2019, 779682 beneficiaries have been covered under Supplementary Nutrition Program in the State," the meeting was told. Speaking at the meeting, Kansal stressed on expeditious implementation of 'Decentralized Policy for Procurement of Supplementary Nutrition' under ICDS to bring transparency, accountability and greater involvement of community in the implementation of the scheme. Under the revised policy approved by the State Administrative Council earlier this year, supplementary nutrition shall be procured at Halqa Panchayat/Municipal Ward level through Panchayats and Municipal Committees. "The procurement of nutrition items will have to be strictly as per the menu displayed in the Anganwari Centres and to be procured from Super Bazaar/Cooperative Stores/Fixed Price Shops/Registered Local Shopkeepers on the rates not exceeding the rates notified by FCS&CA," Kansal maintained adding that the new policy has been framed as per the delegation of powers to the Panchayati Raj Institutions under the amended Panchayati Raj Act. |
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