Centre recognised nutrition as critical for ensuring child survival and development – J.P.Nadda
Mumbai, November 17 : The Government of India has positioned the development of children at its centre and has recognized nutrition as critical for ensuring child survival and development. It has accorded high priority to addressing maternal and child under nutrition through multi-sectoral interventions, said Shri J. P. Nadda , Union Health and Family Welfare Minister.
He was speaking at Global Meeting on Complimentary Feeding organised by Public Health Department of Maharashtra in association with UNICEF, in Mumbai today. He also stated that major intervention to rectify the global burden of under nutrition is to improve infant and young child feeding practices. It is the cornerstone of care for childhood development, improving child survival and promoting healthy growth and development, he added.
The Minister also said that first 2 years of a child’s life are particularly important, as optimal nutrition during this period lowers morbidity and mortality, reduces the risk of chronic disease, and fosters better development overall. Even in resource poor settings, improved feeding practices can lead to improved intakes of energy and nutrients, leading to better nutritional status.
Earlier, Shri Nadda read out the message of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi at the meeting. Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Devendra Fadnavis, Dr. Deepak Sawant, Minister of Public Health and Family Welfare (Maharashtra), Ms. Pankaja Munde – Palwe, Minister of Rural Development and Child Welfare (Maharashtra) , Ms. Karin Hulshof, Regional Director, UNICEF, South Asia were present at the meeting.
Background
The stakes are high for accelerating progress to improve complementary feeding in children 6-23 months. A growing recognition of nutrition as a development priority and as an investment opportunity of high social and economic returns has catalyzed political commitment and increased the need to identify concrete actions to end childhood under nutrition. The new target of reducing the number of stunted children under the age of 5 years by 40 per cent by 2025 set by the World Health Assembly (2012) sets a concrete timeline to achieve his goal. To date a variety of programme strategies to improve complementary feeding practices have been implemented all over the world. Most notably through nutrition education and behaviour change communication, provision of specialized food products, food fortification and supplementary food programmes, with varying rates of success. Most notably, progress in implementing large-scale, sustainable, complementary feeding programmes has been slow but some recent country examples show that it is possible to achieve significant improvements in complementary feeding practices. In order to meet the targets and increase the scale and impact of complementary feeding interventions there is a pressing need to review, discuss and rethink existing programme strategies.
The most recent National estimates of Rapid Survey of Children (2013-14), shows improved rates of breastfeeding – indicating that the rate of initiation of breastfeeding within 1 hour of birth was 44.6%, exclusive breastfeeding 64.9% and complementary feeding 50.5%.
We have a very supportive policy environment –.
Our programmes Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY), and Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (JSSK) have contributed to a rapid increase in coverage of essential interventions. To address this, we not only incentivized institutional delivery but also ensured that every woman who delivers a baby n a public health facility is guaranteed free medical care, free drugs and medicines, free diagnostics, support for a nutritious diet and transport. These entitlements also cover sick children, and antenatal and post natal complications As a result institutional delivery has increased from a pre-programme average of 40.7% in 2005-06 to 75%.
