Bhubaneswar: In a bid to beat malnutrition, the state government has revised the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) menu of Aganwadi Centres (AWCs) with additional nutritious foodstuff.
As per the revised menu, rice, dalma with vegetables and lemon will be provided at AWCs every Monday and Thursday while rice, boiled egg, vegetable curry and lemon will be provided every Tuesday, and rice, egg curry and lemon will be given every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
During a videoconferencing with collectors and District Social Welfare Officers (DSWOs) Thursday, Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi asked them to implement the revised menu from July 15, official sources said Friday.
Padhi directed the collectors to keep strict vigil over the quality and quantity of the nutritious foodstuff supplied to various categories of women and children. They were also directed to ensure regular supply of the materials at Aganwadi Centres.
Women & Child Development secretary Anu Garg said that the menu has been revised as per the revised cost of SNP per head. It may be pertinent here to mention that earlier per head SNP cost was enhanced to Rs 8, Rs 9.50 Rs 12 and Rs 9.50 for children, pregnant women and nursing mothers, severely malnourished children and adolescent girls respectively.
She clarified that hot cooked meals served in AWCs to the children in the age group of 3 to 6 years should have at least five eggs per week per child.
In addition to this, ragi and besan ladoo will be provided every Monday and Thursday as morning snack while groundnut and chuda ladoo will be served Tuesday and Thursday and sprouted moong with jaggery or seasonal fruits every Wednesday and Saturday.
Take Home Ration (THR) for children in the age group of 6 months to 3 years has been revised to 12 eggs, 1.5 kg of dry ration consisting of suji, ragi, maize, besan, sugar and 2.45 kg of chhatua per month.
Similarly, THR for women and nursing mother per month has been revised to 12 eggs, chikki or ladoo made of groundnut/rasi/jaggery (each piece 24.4 gm weight) 25 pieces and chhatua 4.9 kg.
Adolescent girls in the age group of 11-14 will get 16 eggs, 4 kg of chhatua and 25 pieces of ladoo. The revised menu for severely underweight children in age group of 6 months to 3 years includes 12 eggs along with 83 pieces of ladoo and 4.9 kg of chhatua.
THR for severely underweight children between 3 and 6 years includes hot cooked meals and morning snack at AWC daily along with additional 1.8 kg of chhatua and 42 pieces of ladoo.
Around 46.29 lakh children and pregnant mother and 55,568 adolescent girls will be benefited by this new menu at enhanced cost.
