Govt to restructure ICDS to make it effective

New Delhi, June 3: In view of the complaints of various lacunae, the government is planning to revamp and restructure the Integrated Child Developnment Services Scheme to make it more effective to provide supplementary nutrition to the target group.

The proposal in this regard is pending with the Planning Commission for clearance after which a report would be presented to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for suitable decision, ministry sources told sources.

The officials of the Planning Commission and the Ministry of Women and Child Development recently held a meeting to discuss the proposal to restructure the ICDS by developing infrastrucutre support and provide proper nutritional content to beneficiaries.

Moreover, measures to prevent diversion of funds meant for ICDS were also deliberated at the meeting. Initiating public private partnership in implementing the ICDS was also discussed.

The ministry has been advocating that a certain amount of funds given by the rural development ministry should be used for creating infrastructure for the Anganwadi Centres which often do not have toilet facility or pucca building at many places.

Moreover, there have been complaints of substandard food items and either corn puffs or Khichri being provided to children which do not meet their entire nutritional requirement. Many a times, these centres donot provide even the supplementary nutrition.

Recently, a core group had been formed with representatives from food and nutrition board, department of family welfare, secretaries of some states with women and child development and experts in the area of health and nutrition. The Core Group is being headed by Secretary, Women and Child Development Ministry Deepa Jain Singh.

The ICDS was launched in 1975 to improve nutrition and health status of children in the age group of 0 to 6 years and lay a foundation for their proper psychological, physical and social development. Its focus was on reducing incidents of mortality, morbidity, malnutrition and school drop out and achieve child development and increase awarenessness about child nutrition.

Apart form supplementary nutrition, ICDS also provides immunization services, health checks and pre-school non-formal education to children.

Under ICDS preference is given to those belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. In 2004-05, about 41 per cent beneficiaries of the scheme belonged to SC/ST of which 26 per cent were from ST and 15.5 percent from SC.

The Ministry has directed states that villages predominently inhabited by SC/ST and minority community should be given priority in selection of location of Anganwadi Centres and within a village also the areas inhabited by population of SC/ST and minority community be given preference.

Though the number of ICDS projects and anganwadi centres in various states have increased in the recent years, there have been many complaints of its tardy implementation forcing the government to consider its revamping.

Meanwhile, Anganwadi workers also complain of not getting proper renumeration for the services and siphoning of resources at various level, which is needed to be checked by improving the monitoring of the scheme.

UNI