To foster empowerment and protection of women and children, who constitute 67.7 per cent of India’s population, and to assess the implementation of various initiatives under Mission Shakti and Mission Vatsalya, the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD) convened the 5th Programme Approval Board (PAB) meeting for the 2024-25 financial year in Shillong on July 12.
The prime objective of this visit was to evaluate and enhance governance and usage of finances, focusing on schemes such as Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao and to streamline fund disbursement for effective implementation. The PAB meeting, spanning almost about 6-7 hours, deliberated on enhancing emergency response and support systems by exploring the deployment of multipurpose functionaries for emergency helplines, improving software infrastructure through C-DAC, strengthening institutional capacity through training initiatives, enhance public awareness through Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) strategies, and improve the functionality and visibility of One Stop Centres (OSCs). Besides the members from Meghalaya and the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the meeting included representatives from other states such as Assam, Tripura, Jharkhand, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh.
Following the PAB meeting, Anil Malik, Secretary of the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD) along with Development Commissioner and Principal Secretary Sampath Kumar and Deputy Commissioner Rosetta Kurbah, along with the state team conducted a field visit to Laitkroh village in East Khasi Hills today. The visit aimed to gain firsthand insights into Meghalaya’s women-centric initiatives at the district level and its collaboration with the Indian government.
During the field visit, the team’s first stop was at the Anganwadi centre in Mawjrong, East Khasi Hills, where 74 children are currently enrolled. Malik engaged with parents who are active members of self-help groups (SHGs), along with discussions with Anganwadi workers, ASHAs and the Medical Officer. A pivotal topic taken up was the provision of Take Home Ration (THR) and hot cooked meals (HCM). He stressed the importance of preparing meals according to local preferences to ensure they are enjoyed by all. Emphasising the importance of community satisfaction, he remarked, “It is crucial that the food we provide here resonates with local tastes and preferences, ensuring everyone can reap the benefits of the ICDS.”
One of the SHG members raised a concern about the preference for local food over milk, prompting the Secretary to review the SNP guidelines to accommodate local tastes better. To further strengthen services for children and women in the state, it may be mentioned that the Secretary advised submitting sector-specific proposals to the ministry, emphasising tailored strategies to effectively meet local needs.
Interaction with mothers and frontline workers were held to assess the progress in nutrition initiatives. During this session, a presentation highlighted promising improvements on human development indicators. It was seen that there has been a marked improvement in undernutrition status from June 2023 to June 2024. Stunting rates have decreased from 27.18 per cent to 22.02 per cent, while the incidence of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) has significantly dropped from 0.64 per cent to 0.14 per cent. Moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) cases also saw a reduction, going from 1.25 per cent to 0.65 per cent, and the percentage of underweight children fell from 7.49 per cent to 5.46 per cent. In terms of community involvement, the ICDS implementation in Laitkroh has also mobilized 668 Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and 92 Village Organizations (VOs) within the block.
The state team also visited the Observation Home and interacted with children and staff at the Child Care Institution, Mawkasiang in Shillong.
Representatives from several departments, including the Ministry of Women and Child Development, were present at the meeting. This included Sanjeev Kumar Chadha, Additional Secretary at MoWCD, Navendra Singh, Director at MoWCD, and Dhrijesh Kumar Tiwari, Statistical Adviser from the MoWCD, Government of India. They were also joined by teams from the State Social Welfare Department, Pravin Bakshi, IAS- Commissioner & Secretary, Camelia Doreen Lyngwa, Director, Directorate of Social Welfare, team members from the Meghalaya Early Childhood Development Mission, Government Innovation Lab, along with officials from the Child Welfare Committee, District Child Protection Unit, and State Child Protection Services among others.
