Addressing Issue of Starvation Among Children

The Government is giving priority to the issue of increasing the availability of food through agricultural and economic measures towards improvement in yield, storage, and marketing. There are major schemes/programmes in the agriculture sector such as the National Food Security Mission (NFSM), National Horticulture Mission (NHM), Rashtriya Kirshi Vikas Yojana (RKVP), Integrated Scheme of Oilseeds, Pulses, Oil Palm, and maize (ISOPM), and efforts towards augmenting Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries.

Another approach adopted is to provide the supplementary nutrition/meal through the targeted schemes/programmes such as Integrated Child Development Services Scheme(ICDS), Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (RGSEAG), namely, SABALA, and the Mid-day Meal (MDM).

Multi-sectoral interventions include Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), National Horticulture Mission, National Food Security Mission, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan, National Rural Drinking Water Programme etc. Several of the schemes namely, ICDS, NRHM, MDM, SGSY have been expanded post 2005-06. All these schemes have potential to address one or other aspect of Nutrition.

Under Wheat Based Nutrition Programme (WBNP), food grains viz. Wheat, Rice and Coarse grains such as Ragi, Maize, Jowar, Bajra are allocated to States/UTs at BPL rates for facilitating Supplementary Nutrition under the ICDS Scheme. Based on the requirements received from the States, food grains are allocated to the States, by this Ministry on receipt of allotted quota from Department of Food & Public Distribution.

The proposed National Food Security Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha will also contribute towards food security. Government has also announced a pilot programme on Nutri-Farms for introducing new crop varieties that are rich in micro-nutrients such as iron-rich bajra, protein-rich maize and zinc-rich wheat.

This was stated by Smt. Krishna Tirath, Minister for Women and Child Development, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha today.