Minister for Women and Child Development, Government of India, Annapurna Devi, visited Ranchi, on Friday to review the progress of various schemes of the Ministry.

In a meeting the Minister thanked the Prime Minister for emphasising on increasing the scope of PM Ayushman Bharat Jan Arogya Yojana (PM AB-JAY) to cover people above 70 years of age. The inclusion of Anganwadi workers and helpers under the Ayushman Bharat scheme will increase insurance penetration in India as well.

She also emphasised the importance of upgrading mini Anganwadi Centres to full-fledged Anganwadi Centres to ensure better service delivery. In this direction, 2,551 mini Anganwadi Centres in Jharkhand were approved to be upgraded to full-fledged Anganwadi Centres.

The Minister highlighted that this upgradation, as part of Mission Saksham Anganwadi, focuses on creating well-equipped centres that provide integrated services across child development, nutrition and health. In this direction, 6,850 Anganwadi Centres have already been approved to be upgraded in the State of Jharkhand.

She also spoke on the Prime Minister’s commitment towards the betterment of the tribal community, especially through the PM-Janman Nidhi Yojana. To make this a success, funds have been allocated to 111 Anganwadi Centres in Jharkhand, which particularly covers areas with vulnerable tribal population.

Further, the Minister also lauded the ongoing Poshan Maah celebrations, stating that more than 3.8 crore activities have been completed across the country. In Jharkhand alone, more than 26 lakh activities have been completed under the “Ek Ped Ma Ke Naam” campaign.

The meeting was attended by key officials including Manoj Kumar, Secretary, Women and Child Development Department, Jharkhand and Gyanesh Bharti, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India.

The Minister directed the officials present to refocus on priority areas such as implementation of PM-Janman Yojana, improving training for Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) and Supervisors and addressing operational challenges in the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) of the State. He said that efforts in this direction would go a long way in contributing to the Prime Minister’s vision of a developed India and women-led development.

The Minister concluded the meeting by reaffirming the Government’s commitment towards empowering women and children through the Ministry’s strategic initiatives such as Mission Saksham Anganwadi, Mission Vatsalya and Mission Shakti and called for timely actions to overcome the challenges identified during the review.