Make villages, cities malnutrition and anaemia-free: LG

Srinagar, May 8 : Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Wednesday called for making the villages and cities malnutrition and anaemia-free.

Chairing a meeting to review the functioning of the Social Welfare Department, the LG said that villages and cities should be made malnutrition and anaemia-free.

Taking appraisal of the saturation of social welfare schemes, he directed the officials to make dedicated efforts to ensure 100 percent Aadhaar seeding of the beneficiaries under various schemes.

Reviewing the performance of Poshan Abhiyaan, Sinha urged them to focus on Aadhaar seeding on the Poshan tracker and widening the scope of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

He directed to conduct a study to assess the impact of the scheme on the ground.

The LG also reviewed the performance of Anganwadi centres and directed the officers to ensure that all Anganwadi centres were fully functional with all the facilities in place.

He emphasised the role of Anganwadi centres as a hub for health, nutrition, early learning, responsive care, security, and safety of children.

Sinha said that the effective and efficient functioning of Anganwadi centres was key to child development.

Asserting that Poshan Maah and Poshan Pakhwada were two important components of Poshan Abhiyaan, he said that there was a need to further increase the IEC activities so that benefits reach all intended beneficiaries.

The LG said that the administration’s focus should be on socially, educationally, and economically marginalised sections of the society, and the empowerment of women.

He also discussed the steps required to create an environment so they these groups realise their full potential.

The meeting reviewed the performance of Nanhe Kadam, women assisted under Sankalp, and One Stop Centre.

The LG also called for collective efforts in the fight against the drug menace.

The meeting was attended by the Principal Secretary Finance Department, Santosh D Vaidya; the Principal Secretary to LG, Mandeep Kumar Bhandari; the Commissioner Secretary Social Welfare Department, Sheetal Nanda; Administrative Secretaries; Heads of Departments and senior officials.