Poshan Maah programme concludes: A focus on enhancing child nutrition in Amlarem

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaSeptember 30, 2024

The month-long Poshan Maah programme, conducted by ICDS, the Health Department, and the Education Department, concluded on September 30. The programme was held at Syiem Jingsuk Hall, Amlarem, with Dr. A. Saini, IAS, as the Chief Guest and R. Passah, Assistant Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, as the Guest of Honour.

As Chief Guest, Abhishek Saini stated that both the Central and State Governments are working together to ensure the health, growth, and nutrition of children in the state. He noted that during his conversation with the Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) of Amlarem, he learned that the current food available for children is not well received; the children and beneficiaries do not find the food tasty, which affects their willingness to consume it. Therefore, there is a need to introduce locally made meals that are not only healthy but also delicious.

He informed the attendees that even the Principal Secretary has emphasized the importance of incorporating locally sourced meals into the programme, stressing that these meals should not only be nutritious but also appealing, ensuring they are rich in iron and protein. He thanked the Medical Officers, CDPOs, and Amlarem Block teams for their hard work in identifying children suffering from severe malnutrition, as well as pregnant and breastfeeding mothers who need assistance with anemia, which remains a significant issue.

CDPO H Biam highlighted the health-related activities conducted throughout the month, starting on September 1, 2024. These activities included fitness programmes, nutrition education, promoting healthy food cultivation, and a cleanliness campaign. She noted that this year’s Poshan Maah Campaign focuses on critical themes such as anemia prevention, growth monitoring, complementary feeding, effective service delivery through good governance and technology, “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam,” and “Poshan Bhi, Padhai Bhi.”

Poshan Maah is a nationwide movement for health and nutrition. In alignment with the above themes, various activities have been conducted. To address the problem of anemia, the ICDS office in Amlarem called upon all villages to participate in an open-to-all recipe competition featuring locally available vegetables, fruits rich in iron, and millets. The cooking competition, held on September 17, 2024, showcased around 146 items prepared from various areas, including Dawki, Pdengshakap, Nongtalang, and Jarain.

With this initiative, the office launched the menu of ICDS Amlarem, which will serve as a reference booklet for preparing food items rich in iron for pregnant and lactating mothers in all Anganwadi Centres to combat anemia.

Prizes were also distributed to the winners of the Poshan Maah competition in different categories: Non-Conventional Food, Locally Available Food (Village), and SHG (Locally Available Food). The office also felicitated the Anganwadi workers for their dedication in adopting, monitoring, and feeding the children as advised by the NRC Jowai. The Anganwadi workers honoured were Ralis Khyriem from the Pamtbuh Anganwadi Centre of the Pdengshap sector, Glorimai Lyngdohgiri from Nongtalang Khlachampa B in the Nongtalang sector, and Christilin Pochen from Nongtalang Thymmai in the Nongtalang sector.