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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4800
TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.03.2026
SPECIAL NUTRITION STRATEGY FOR BUNDELKHAND REGION
4800. SHRI ANURAG SHARMA:
Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:
(a) whether stunting, wasting and anaemia continue to pose serious public health
challenges in the country, if so, the current status of malnutrition in Uttar Pradesh,
particularly in the Bundelkhand region, district-wise;
(b) the number of Anganwadi Centres functioning under ICDS along with vacancies and
availability of basic infrastructure therein in the said State and region;
(c) the details of the funds allocated under Mission Poshan 2.0 during the current financial
year along with the share received by the said region indicating beneficiary registration
under the Poshan Tracker;
(d) whether any special nutrition strategy/budgetary provision has been made for high-risk
regions such as the said region, if so, the details thereof;
(e) the current status of women’s labour force participation in the said State and said region
along with the steps taken to strengthen the care economy; and
(f) the number of child marriage cases, One-Stop Centres along with the progress under
Beti Bachao Beti Padhao in the said State and region?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
(SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR)
(a) to (d): To address the challenge of malnutrition, Anganwadi services, Poshan Abhiyaan and
Scheme for Adolescent girls have been subsumed under the umbrella Mission Saksham
Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 (Mission Poshan 2.0). The status of nutritional indicators and
infrastructure details at operational Anganwadi Centres in the State of Uttar Pradesh
(including Bundelkhand region) are available in the Poshan Tracker public dashboard at the
link: https://www.poshantracker.in/statistics.
As per National Family Health Survey 5 (2019-21), the prevalence of anaemia in children under
5 years of age in Bundelkhand region is placed in the Annexure.The details of vacancies available in districts of Bundelkhand region of the State of Uttar
Pradesh are: Jhansi (203), Lalitpur (52), Jalaun (238), Hamirpur (83), Mahoba (136), Banda
(119) and Chitrakoot (94).
The details of Central share received by districts of Bundelkhand region in the State of Uttar
Pradesh under Mission Poshan 2.0 during the current financial year are: ₹ 22.61 Crore for
Banda, ₹ 27.81 Crore for Chitrakoot, ₹ 12.39 Crore for Hamirpur, ₹ 15.73 Crore for Jalaun, ₹
19.84 Crore for Jhansi, ₹ 30.61 crores for Lalitpur and ₹ 10.53 crores for Mahoba.
Under the Mission Poshan 2.0, a new strategy has been made for reduction in malnutrition
and for improved health, wellness and immunity through activities like community
engagement, outreach, behavioral change and advocacy. It focuses on Maternal Nutrition,
Infant and Young Child Feeding Norms, treatment of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM)/
Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) and wellness through AYUSH practices to reduce
prevalence of wasting, stunting, anaemia and being underweight. As a part of the strategy,
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). Extra Supplementary Nutrition is provided to Severely Acutely Malnourished (SAM)
children as per National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA).
The State Government of Uttar Pradesh conducts the Sambhav Campaign annually for a
duration of three months with the objective of eliminating malnutrition among children through
a focused, multi-departmental approach. It aims at identification, treatment, and mainstreaming
of malnourished children into the normal nutrition category. Five phases of the campaign have
been completed so far. Under Sambhav Campaign 5.0, special emphasis was placed on the
management and reduction of stunting, aligned with the objective of reducing the stunting rate
in Uttar Pradesh by the year 2030.
The State Government also organizes Poshan Pathshala programmes to spread awareness on
key nutrition-related issues such as stunting, early initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive
breastfeeding, and appropriate complementary feeding practices. During the current year, four
such sessions were conducted, and a total of eight sessions have been organized so far, with
participation of more than one lakh viewers in each session through live webcasts.
(e): As per the Annual Report of Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS, 2023-24) conducted by
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), women’s LFPR in the State of
Uttar Pradesh rose from 14.2 percent in 2017–18 to 34.5 per cent in 2023–24. The overall
labour force participation rate (LFPR) in the State stands at 56.9 per cent, with male LFPR at
79.5 percent and female LFPR at 34.5 percent.
As regards the care economy, several provisions have been incorporated in the labour codes
for congenial work environment for women workers:
• The Code on Social Security, 2020 has the provisions for enhancement in paid
maternity leave from 12 weeks to 26 weeks, provision for mandatory crèche facility in
the establishments having 50 or more employees, permitting women workers in the
night shifts with adequate safety measures, etc.• The Ministry of Women and Child Development is implementing ‘Palna’ component
under Mission Shakti for all States and UTs, under which providing day care facilities
and protection of children is the focus area. Under Palna, Ministry has extended free
services of childcare through Anganwadi cum Creches (AWCC).
• The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 provides for payment of equal remuneration to men
and women workers for the same work or work of similar nature without any
discrimination. In addition, Ministry of Labour and Employment in January 2024
issued an “Advisory for Employers to Promote Women Workforce Participation”.
(f): The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) compiles and publishes the data on the
number of cases of child marriage registered under 'the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act
(PCMA), 2006' in its publication 'Crime in India'. The said report is available upto the year
2022 – Crime Head-wise and State/ UT-wise. As per information available from NCRB, the
number of cases registered under 'the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, (PCMA), 2006 during
the years 2020, 2021 and 2022 in Uttar Pradesh particularly Bundelkhand region are 785, 1050
and 1002 respectively. However, higher reporting of cases does not necessarily reflect increase
in the number of cases of child marriages, but it may be because of increased awareness among
citizens to report such incidents due to initiatives by the Government and better enforcement
of law by the State.
One Stop Centres (OSC) under Mission Shakti provide integrated and immediate support and
assistance under one roof to women affected by violence and those in distress, both in private
and public spaces all across the country including the Bundelkhand Region of Uttar Pradesh.
As on date, 96 OSCs are operational in Uttar Pradesh, out of which, one OSC is operational in
each of the districts of Chitrakoot, Banda, Hamirpur, Mahoba, Lalitpur and two OSCs are
operational in the districts of Jhansi, Jalaun which has assisted over 3,04,109 women in the
Uttar Pradesh.
Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) Scheme was launched on 22nd January 2015 to address Child
Sex Ratio (CSR) and related issues of empowerment of girls and women over a life cycle
continuum. The scheme is implemented in all the districts of the country including the
Bundelkhand Region. As per the latest reports of Health Management Information System
(HMIS) of Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW), in the State of Uttar Pradesh, Sex
Ratio at Birth (SRB) has increased from 885 in 2014-15 to 936 in 2024-25.
*****Annexure
NATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH SURVEY-5 (2019-21) DATA ON PREVALENCE OF
ANAEMIA IN CHILDREN UNDER 5 YEARS OF AGE IN BUNDELKHAND
REGION:
S. No. Name of the district Children age 6-59 months who are anaemic (%)
1 Jalaun 55.2
2 Jhansi 70.3
3 Lalitpur 56.0
4 Hamirpur 68.5
5 Mahoba 70.1
6 Banda 82.2
7 Chitrakoot 55.3
*****