Nutritional diet and healthy living for children
The Government of India is implementing several schemes/programmes of different Ministries/Departments through States/UTs to address various aspects related to nutrition and promoting nutritional diet and a healthy living especially for children across the country. The POSHAN Abhiyaan, Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, Anganwadi Services Scheme and Scheme for Adolescent Girls under the Umbrella Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS) are implemented by Government as direct targeted interventions to address the problem of malnutrition in the country.
The detail of supplementary nutrition is provided to different categories of the beneficiaries as per the norms for 300 days in a year are through ICDS. The detail are provided below in tabular form.
Under Poshan Abhiyaan ‘Rashtriya POSHAN Maah’ and ‘Poshan Pakhwada’ are celebrated each year in the month of September and March respectively with the aim to create awareness about nutrition and healthy food etc.
Awareness generation activities such as “Eat Right India” campaign are also implemented with the objective to create awareness about ‘Eating Healthy’ ‘Eating Safe’ and ‘Eating Sustainably ‘among school children and the community at large.
Other schemes below implementing for promoting nutritional diet and a healthy living especially for children across the country are:
- Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) Scheme earlier known as ‘National Programme for Mid-Day Meal in Schools’ is one of the foremost rights based Centrally Sponsored Schemes. This Scheme covers all school children studying in Classes I-VIII in Government and Government-Aided Schools.
- Schedule II of the National Food Security Act (NFSA), mandates provision of hot cooked meal containing 450 calories and 12 gms protein for primary and 700 calories and 20 gms protein for upper primary class children under this scheme. The scheme also provides cooking cost of ₹ 4.97 for primary and ₹ 7.45 for upper primary per child per day on all working days for meeting the cost of pulses, vegetables, edible oil and condiments.
| S. no. | Categories | Types of food |
| | Children (6-36 months) | Take Home Ration containing 500 calories of energy and 12-15 gms. of protein in the form that is palatable to the child. |
| | Severely mal-nourished children (6-36 months) | Same type of food as above with food supplement of 800 calories of energy and 20-25 gms. of Protein. |
| | Children (3-6 years) | Morning snack in the form of milk/banana/seasonal fruits etc. and Hot cooked Meal. |
| | Severely mal-nourished Children (3-6 years) | Additional 300 calories of energy and 8-10 gms. of Protein in the form of micro-nutrient fortified food and/or energy dense food. |
| | Pregnant women & Nursing mothers | Take Home Ration in the form of micro-nutrient fortified food and/or energy dense food. |
The Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar stated this in a written reply in the LokSabha today.