UP government & Vedanta join forces to wipe out malnourishment

New Delhi: India's leading diversified natural resources conglomerate, Vedanta Limited has joined hands with the Government of Uttar Pradesh reaffirming its commitment to combat and eradicate malnourishment from the state by the year 2024.

Vedanta's philanthropic arm, The Anil Agarwal Foundation plans to end all forms of malnutrition, including stunting and wasting in children under five years of age, and address the nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating women through its flagship CSR Project Nand Ghar.

Nand Ghar has partnered with Mealmile Nutrients, as a part of its thematic interventions on right nutrition. Initiating a pilot project, the partnership is targeting to improvise the nutritional levels of 3000 malnourished children in the Araji line block of Varanasi.

Under the pilot, a Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) in the form of a paste, manufactured by Mealmile Nutrients is being distributed by the district administration to each of the household having malnourished children in Varanasi. The project aims to potentially improve the nutritional and health status of the targeted children by ensuring access to nutritious food. The ongoing pilot project is five months long and shall be eventually assessed by the district administration.

On the occasion, Priya Agarwal, Director, Vedanta Resources said: "Project Nand Ghar is committed towards PM's vision of a malnourishment-free India. It is our chairman's dream to see no child goes to bed hungry. This partnership with the Government of Uttar Pradesh will strengthen our commitment to combat malnourishment among children and ensuring a healthy future for them."

The District Magistrate of Varanasi, Kaushal Raj Sharma said: "Malnourishment suppresses the development and growth of children. Our primary focus is to provide the necessary nourishment to the children so that they get the opportunity to grow to their full potential. With this partnership we shall ensure proper nourishment for the holistic development of the children, hence the nation."

Currently, there are 950 Nand Ghars in the state of Uttar Pradesh, directly impacting the lives of 40,000 children and 30,000 women. As a methodology in combating malnutrition Nand Ghar has deployed numerous means to sensitize and nudge the communities towards incorporating right nutrition habits. The Nand Ghars across 12 states in India have more than 5000 indigenous nutrition gardens under it's flap for supplemental healthy greens in the diet of 1 lakh children, pregnant and lactating mothers.

Anchoring the nutritional interventions with Behavioral Change Communication, regular sensitization and awareness sessions on health, nutrition and lifestyle, encouraging breastfeeding and sharing of focused IEC materials, Nand Ghar has set its vision straight to inculcating healthier habits amongst the rural strata of the society.

Within the tenure of two years, Vedanta shall jointly work with the government for focused interventions on identification of SAM/MAM children, holistic health and potential development of targeted children, regular follow ups, awareness session and tracking growth of targeted children along with provision of health supplements and therapeutic foods and reduce the incidence of mortality, morbidity and malnutrition amongst children.

It is worth noting that Vedanta Group's Anil Agarwal Foundation has also signed an MoU with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation concreting their partnership for achieving a unified goal of eradicating malnourishment.

The AAF foundation has also pledged 5000 Crores under a one of its kind social development initiatives with various Projects like Nand Ghar, Swasthya Goan Abhiyan with the sole aim to strengthen the core of the nation, its communities.