Parliament Question: Malnourished Children

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2479 TO BE ANSWERED ON 13.02.2026 MALNOURISHED CHILDREN 2479. SHRI SAGAR ESHWAR KHANDRE: Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state: (a) whether the Bidar district in Karnataka has reported 7,207 malnourished children in 2024-25, including 838 cases of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and 6,369 cases of Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM), if so, the details thereof; (b) whether any review has been conducted to identify underlying causes such as maternal undernutrition, premature births, poor infant feeding practices and inconsistent anganwadi monitoring in high risk taluks like Bhalki, Basavakalyan, Aurad, Humnabad and Bidar, if so, the details thereof; (c) whether the Ministry has assessed the impact of recent budgetary changes on ICDS, Supplementary Nutrition Program and POSHAN Abhiyaan in backward districts including Bidar; and (d) the details of the immediate steps being taken to reduce SAM/MAM burden, ensure continuous anganwadi monitoring, strengthen maternal nutrition and provide targeted interventions in the most affected taluks of the said districts? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR) (a): As per the latest available data of Poshan Tracker, there are 121 cases of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and 5,031 cases of Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) among children under 5 years of age in the Bidar district of Karnataka (as on 31st January 2026). The State and UT wise data on malnutrition indicators including all districts of Karnataka is available at the given link of Poshan Tracker: https://www.poshantracker.in/statistics. (b) to (d): Malnutrition is a complex and multi-dimensional issue, affected mainly by a number of generic factors including inadequate food consumption, improper maternal infant and child feeding and care practices, inequity and gender imbalances, poor sanitary andenvironmental conditions; and restricted access to quality health, education and social care services. In 2021, the World Bank conducted a survey on Poshan Abhiyaan in 11 priority states. The aim of this survey was to assess the program’s delivery of nutrition services, whether the nutritional knowledge of beneficiaries had improved and if they had adopted more appropriate nutrition and feeding practices. The findings demonstrated that the services delivered through the Poshan Abhiyaan – the receipt of relevant messages, home visits by the Anganwadi Worker, and attendance at community-based events – were associated with improved nutrition behaviors. The survey also found that the program's nutrition messages reached more than 80% of women, and that 81% of women practiced exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months. Further, a third-party evaluation and impact assessment of Poshan Abhiyaan was conducted by NITI Aayog in 2020 and also in 2025 and has found its relevance to be satisfactory for tackling malnutrition in the country. Further, an outcome-based evaluation study of Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 was conducted by DMEO, NITI Aayog (2025). As per the study, evidence from institutional assessments and household surveys indicates that digitalization through Poshan Tracker Application has a multi-dimensional impact on nutrition monitoring, Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), beneficiary authentication, and service delivery efficiency. The Report also highlighted Poshan Tracker as a significant shift from manual, paper-based systems to a technology-enabled governance framework under the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP). Some of the various steps taken from time to time to address the challenge of malnutrition including the prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies in the whole country are mentioned below: • Poshan Tracker an ICT tool has been implemented for monitoring and tracking of all Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) (including Bidar district of the State of Karnataka), Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) and beneficiaries on defined indicators of stunting, wasting, under-weight prevalence among children. It has facilitated near real time data collection for Anganwadi Services such as, daily attendance, ECCE, Delivery of Hot Cooked Meal (HCM) and Take Home Ration, Growth Measurement etc. The App also offers counselling videos on key behaviours and services which help disseminate messages on birth preparedness, delivery, post-natal care, breastfeeding, and complementary feeding. The findings from the data of Application provides insights for mid-course correction in related policies. • To effectively address the issue of malnutrition, cross cutting convergence has been ensured amongst more than 18 Ministries/Departments to adopt a multi-sectoral approach involving dimensions of food, health, water, sanitation and education. • Under Mission Poshan 2.0, Supplementary Nutrition is provided to Children (6 months to 6 years), Pregnant Women, Lactating Mothers and Adolescent Girls in accordance with the nutrition norms contained in Schedule-II of the National Food Security Act, 2013. These norms have been revised in January 2023. The old norms were largely calorie-specific; however, the revised norms are more comprehensive and balanced in terms of both quantity and quality of supplementary nutrition based on the principles of diet diversity that provides for quality protein, healthy fats and micronutrients (Calcium, Zinc, Iron, Dietary Folate, Vitamin A, Vitamin-B6 and Vitamin B-12). ExtraSupplementary Nutrition is provided to Severely Acutely Malnourished (SAM) children as per National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA). • Fortified rice is being supplied to all AWCs to meet the requirement of micro-nutrients and to control anaemia among women and children. Greater emphasis is being laid on the use of millets at least once a week for preparation of Hot Cooked Meal and Take- Home ration at Anganwadi Centers. • Ministry of Women & Child Development and Ministry of Health & Family Welfare have jointly released the protocol for Management of Malnutrition in Children to manage malnourished children at the community level and for reducing associated morbidity and mortality. • Poshan Vatikas or Nutri-gardens have been set up across the country to provide easy and affordable access to fruits, vegetables, medicinal plants and herbs. To encourage diet-diversity and consumption of wholesome local produce, Poshan Vatikas have been developed at AWCs. • One of the major activities undertaken is Community Mobilization and Awareness Advocacy to educate people on nutritional aspects as adoption of good nutrition habit requires sustained efforts for behavioural change. Further, Community Based Events (CBEs) conducted at the Anganwadi Centers have served as a significant strategy in promoting healthy nutritional practices. *****