Rajasthan govt asks Centre to sanction more Anganwadi centres

The Rajasthan government has asked the Centre to increase the number of Anganwadi centers in the state for effective implementation of the 'Poshan Abhiyan'. According to the transcript of the meeting of the National Council of Nutritional Challenges accessed by PTI, Rajasthan's Women and Child Development Minister Mamta Bhupesh has asked the Union Women and Child Development Ministry to sanction more Anganwadi centers for the state.

"Geographically, Rajasthan is a large state and anganwadis are located at a distance of six to seven kilometers. It makes transportation of children difficult from one place to another. Hence, I request the Centre to increase the number of Anganwadi centers in the state," Bhupesh said. She further said that more Anganwadi centers are required for the effective implementation of the Poshan Abhiyan or the National Nutrition Mission.

Presently, there are 62,000 Anganwadi centers operational in Rajasthan and 14 lakh across the country. Bhupesh also raised the issue of around 20,000 such centers being taken on rent.

"If budget could be sanctioned then we can build more Anganwadi centers rather than taking them on rent," she said. The meeting was held to review the National Nutrition Mission or 'Poshan Abhiyan', a program launched with the aim to reduce the level of stunting, undernutrition, anemia and low birth weight in children.

It aims to achieve a reduction in stunting from 38.4 percent (NFHS-4) to 25 percent by 2022. The meeting was also attended by NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar, Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani, WCD secretary Rabindra Panwar, officials of the Union Health Ministry, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Nutrition among others.

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