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Akhilesh govt mulls mission to control malnutrition in state

With the aim of fighting malnutrition among children, the UP government has decided to set up a ‘State Nutrition Mission’ on the lines of Maharashtra, to work like a society and help in tackling the malaise.

A decision to this effect was taken in a Cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow on Tuesday.

As per the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), 42 per cent children in UP in the age group of 0 -5 years are underweight and 7 per cent are severely malnourished. The Hunger and Malnutrition Survey Report-2011 also points out that 16 per cent children are severely underweight, 58.55 per cent are moderately underweight, 4 per cent are severely malnourished.

‘This mission will work as an autonomous body with a  three-year term. The corpus fund for the Mission would be given from the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM),’ a government spokesman said.

‘The primary function of the mission in the first phase would be to hold survey, take weight of children and look for the options to remove malnutrition among children,’ he added.

The decision to form the State Nutrition Mission was taken in September when a delegation of ‘Citizen’s Alliance Against Malnutrition’ focused on the prevailing ill. The delegation comprised chief minister, his MP wife Dimple Yadav and others. The delegation also went to a village to  get a first hand feel of the situation.

‘This mission would be headed by the chief minister and ministers from ICDS, Food and Civil Supplies, Health and Family Welfare, Social Welfare and Panchayati Raj departments would be members. Representatives from NRHM and UNICEF would also be part of this team.

‘The idea behind such a mission is to bring together various government departments who are working in this field,’ the spokesman said.
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