**Executive Summary**
This document is a response to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha regarding the protection of women and children under welfare schemes, particularly in Kerala. The response details how the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) has consolidated various schemes into three Umbrella Missions. The document also mentions a third-party evaluation by NITI Aayog. The response was to be answered on 13.02.2026.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Scheme Consolidation:**
* The MWCD has consolidated various welfare schemes for women and children into three Umbrella Missions:
* Mission Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0: For improving nutrition & health indicators.
* Mission Shakti: For safety, protection, and empowerment of women.
* Mission Vatsalya: For protection, care, and welfare of children in difficult circumstances.
* **Mission Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0:**
* Reorganized Anganwadi Services Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyaan and Scheme for Adolescent Girls into 3 primary sub-verticals:
* Nutrition Support for Children, Pregnant Women & Lactating Mothers and for Adolescent Girls
* Early Childhood Care and Education
* Anganwadi Infrastructure including upgraded Saksham Anganwadis.
* **Mission Shakti (Two Verticals):**
* 'Sambal': For safety, security, and empowerment of women.
* 'Samarthya': For women.
* **Schemes Under Sambal:**
* One Stop Centres (OSC): Integrated support for women affected by violence.
* Women Helplines (181-WHL): 24x7x365 toll-free emergency/non-emergency response system integrated with ERSS (112).
* Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP): Addressing declining Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB).
* Nari Adalat: Pilot initiative for empowering women by ensuring justice.
* **Schemes Under Samarthya:**
* Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY): Maternity Benefit Scheme.
* Shakti Sadan: Integrated Relief and Rehabilitation Home for women in distress.
* Sakhi Niwas: Safe and conveniently located accommodation for working women.
* National Hub for Empowerment of Women (NHEW): To facilitate intersectoral convergence of schemes and programs meant for women.
* Palna: To increase participation of women in the workforce by providing quality crèche facilities.
* **Mission Vatsalya:**
* Includes the Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS).
* Support and sustain Children in difficult circumstances.
* Develop context-based solutions for holistic development of children from varied backgrounds.
* Provide scope for encouraging innovative solutions
* Cement convergent action
* **Evaluation and Review:**
* NITI Aayog conducted a third-party evaluation of the MWCD schemes for Financial Years 2019-2024, which found the schemes relevant.
* Implementation of schemes and utilization of funds is reviewed regularly through meetings, video conferences, and field visits.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholder: Vulnerable Families in Kerala (particularly in border and coastal districts like Kasaragod)**
* **Impact:** Impacted by gaps in the implementation of women and child-centric welfare schemes.
* **Action Required:** None explicitly stated, but implication is to benefit from improved scheme delivery and inclusiveness.
**Stakeholder: Women**
* **Impact:** Affected by schemes related to safety, security, empowerment, nutritional support, childcare services and maternal health outreach
* **Action Required:** May be eligible to apply for or benefit from various schemes.
**Stakeholder: Children**
* **Impact:** Affected by schemes related to nutrition, health, protection, care and welfare.
* **Action Required:** To benefit from improved scheme delivery and inclusiveness.
**Stakeholder: Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD)**
* **Impact:** Responsible for implementing and monitoring the Umbrella Missions.
* **Action Required:** Strengthen delivery, monitoring, and inclusiveness of women and child welfare programs, and review scheme implementation.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Women and Child Development: The primary government body responsible for the welfare schemes discussed in the document.
Mission Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0: An umbrella mission aimed at improving nutrition and health indicators.
Mission Shakti: An umbrella mission focused on the safety, protection, and empowerment of women.
Mission Vatsalya: An umbrella mission focused on the protection, care, and welfare of children in difficult circumstances.
Kerala: The state where the implementation of women and child-centric welfare schemes is being questioned.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2391
TO BE ANSWERED ON 13.02.2026
PROTECTION OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN UNDER WELFARE SCHEMES
2391. SHRI RAJMOHAN UNNITHAN:
Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:
(a) whether gaps in implementation of women and child-centric welfare schemes are
affecting vulnerable families in Kerala, particularly in border and coastal districts like
Kasaragod, if so, the details thereof;
(b) whether nutritional support, childcare services and maternal health outreach remain
inadequate in certain regions, if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether performance of ICDS, POSHAN Abhiyaan and related schemes has
been reviewed, district-wise, if so, the details thereof;
(d) whether any special interventions have been proposed for backward and high-risk
districts, if so, the details thereof; and
(e) the details of the steps being taken/proposed to be taken to strengthen delivery,
monitoring and inclusiveness of women and child welfare programmes?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
(SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR)
(a) to (e): Various schemes implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development
(MWCD) for welfare of women and children all over the country, including schemes for
nutrition support, childcare services and maternal health outreach in Kerala, have been clubbed
into three Umbrella Missions viz. (1) Mission Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0 for
improving nutrition & health indicators (2) Mission Shakti, for safety, protection and
empowerment of women; and (3) Mission Vatsalya, for protection, care and welfare of children
in difficult circumstances. Details of the Umbrella Missions are as under:(i) Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0 (Mission Poshan 2.0): Under this mission,
Anganwadi Services Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyaan and Scheme for Adolescent Girls have been
reorganized into 3 primary sub-verticals: (i) Nutrition Support for Children, Pregnant Women
& Lactating Mothers and for Adolescent Girls (ii) Early Childhood Care and Education and
(iii) Anganwadi Infrastructure including upgraded Saksham Anganwadis.
(ii) Mission Shakti: It comprises of two verticals ‘Sambal’ and ‘Samarthya’ for safety,
security and empowerment of women, respectively.
I. Sambal - The following schemes have been included under the Sambal vertical: One Stop
Centres (OSC) - for providing integrated support and assistance to women affected by
violence and those in distress, both in private and public spaces in a convergent and coordinated
manner under one roof; Women Helplines (181-WHL) is a 24 x 7 x 365 toll-free
emergency/non-emergency response system that is integrated with ERSS (112) and other
existing helplines/institutions; Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) - launched with an aim to
address declining Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) and related issues of empowerment of girls and
women over a life cycle continuum; Nari Adalat – a pilot initiative aimed at empowering
women by ensuring justice and to offer services such as alternate dispute resolution, grievance
redressal, counselling, evidence-based decision-making, pressure group tactics, negotiation,
mediation, and reconciliation.
II. Samarthya - The following schemes have been included under ‘Samarthya’ vertical:
Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) - a Centrally Sponsored Maternity
Benefit Scheme under which cash incentives flow to the beneficiaries in Direct Benefit
Transfer (DBT) mode for the first child and the second girl child; Shakti Sadan - an Integrated
Relief and Rehabilitation Home for women in distress situations including trafficked women;
Sakhi Niwas - to promote availability of safe and conveniently located accommodation for
working women in urban, semi-urban and also in rural areas where employment opportunities
for women exist; National Hub for Empowerment of Women (NHEW) - to facilitate
intersectoral convergence of schemes and programs meant for women at National level, State/
UT level and district level and Palna that aims to increase the participation of women in work
force in the economy by providing quality crèche facility in safe and secure environment for
children.
(iii) Mission Vatsalya: Mission Vatsalya includes the Integrated Child Protection Scheme
(ICPS) for better outreach and protection for children in need and care in a mission mode with
the objective to: (i) Support and sustain Children in difficult circumstances. (ii) Develop
context-based solutions for holistic development of children from varied backgrounds.
(iii)Provide scope for encouraging innovative solutions, (iv) Cement convergent action.NITI Aayog has got conducted a third-party evaluation of the schemes of the Ministry of
Women and Child Development for Financial Years 2019 to 2024. The study found that the
schemes of the Ministry are relevant.
The implementation of schemes including utilization of funds is reviewed on regular basis at
various high levels through physical meetings, video conferences and field visits.
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