With a view to reduce malnutrition among children in the State, Haryana Government would organise ‘malnutrition awareness’ campaign in all villages of the State from December 10 to January 2, 2016.
Haryana Women and Child Development Minister, Kavita Jain on Tuesday said that during the campaign, the weight of children would be measured at each Anganwadi centre from December 10 to 14.
A list of villages with a large number of underweight children would be prepared, apart from a list of underweight children, she added.
The camps would be organised in villages from December 15 to January 2 during which supervisors would provide counselling to pregnant and breastfeeding women on malnutrition, its consequences and remedies.
She added that nutritional counselling is also being provided on breastfeeding and its importance, initiation of complementary feeding after the infant attains six months of age, sanitation and hygiene, anaemia and vitamin deficiency.
Apart from this, demonstration of preparation of weaning foods, dry weaning food mixture, sooji dalia, khichri, and high-protein and high-calorie recipes for underweight children would be held.
As per the Rapid Survey on Children (RSOC), a 2013-14 nationwide sample survey, as many as 55.8 percent children in Haryana had stunted growth, 30.2 percent were underweight and 11.5 percent were found wasted (rapid loss of fat and muscle weight loss) in the age group of 0-59 months.
The Minister said that supervisors would also organise quiz based on these topics for women from December 16 to 31, 2015.
Expressing concern over the findings of the National Family Health Survey-3, (2005-06), according to which 40 per cent of children in Haryana are underweight, Jain said that this awareness campaign is being run under an action plan prepared by the Department for improving Infant Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices at Anganwadi level in campaign mode from November 15 to December 31.
Under this action plan, which is aimed at preventing malnutrition in women and children, high burden villages are being identified after collecting data regarding Infant Mortality Rate, Maternal Mortality Rate, institutional deliveries and immunisation, and a directory of women in serious condition is being prepared, she added.