Lok Sabha Question No. 4800 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-20
Subject: Special Nutrition Strategy for Bundelkhand Region
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Shri Anurag Sharma

## 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.

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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 districtChildren age 6-59 months who are anaemic (%) | S. No.Name of the districtChildren age 6-59 months who are anaemic (%)   |   S. No.Name of the districtChildren age 6-59 months who are anaemic (%) |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|                                                                        1 | Jalaun                                                                   |                                                                     55.2 |
|                                                                        2 | Jhansi                                                                   |                                                                     70.3 |
|                                                                        3 | Lalitpur                                                                 |                                                                     56   |
|                                                                        4 | Hamirpur                                                                 |                                                                     68.5 |
|                                                                        5 | Mahoba                                                                   |                                                                     70.1 |
|                                                                        6 | Banda                                                                    |                                                                     82.2 |
|                                                                        7 | Chitrakoot                                                               |                                                                     55.3 |

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