Ahmedabad: The increasing number of malnourished children residing in slums across the city has become a cause of concern for both the state government and the civic body. And, to combat this, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) will be providing nutritious food to such children.
As part of the state government’s scheme of eradicating malnourishment, the civic body will set up a village child nutrition centre in different parts of the city where slums exist. Anganwadi workers would also be roped in for the programme. They would be keeping tabs on newborn babies in their localities.
AMC family welfare officer Kinnariben Mehta said: “We have begun with the first phase and 20 areas have been taken up on a priority basis.”
These areas include Madhupura, Girdharnagar, Shahpur, Paldi, Naranpura and other areas. It will be provided to the children between the age group of 0-5 years.
Workers and doctors at the centre will weigh the child and measure his/her height to determine the region of malnourishment. In medical terms, a child is found malnourished in red, yellow or green region, which determines the level of malnourishment. Depending on the level, the centre provides the nutritious meal.
“We will advise five meals in a day consisting of home-made food like laapsi, sheero and others. This will continue for a month to bring the child to normal weight,” said Mehta.
A follow-up would be done every 15 days to assess the child’s weight and health. The first phase of the scheme has been launched and the second will begin next month. It would be implemented in 40 more areas. “The aim is to bring newborn malnourished children to normal weight,” she pointed out.
DNA
