INDIA. Mumbai: The Union Government’s “Poshan Abhiyaan” (Nutrition Awareness Campaign) with a focus on maternal health of communities, especially minority communities, was organized in various parts of Mumbai, including Asia’s largest slum-Dharavi in South Central Mumbai on Monday.
Union Minister for Women and Child Development Smriti Zubin Irani and Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi attended the series of programs at various places, among different sections of society.
The campaign was jointly organized by the Union Ministry for Women and Child Development and Union Ministry for Minority Affairs, for the benefit of women belonging to various minority communities living in disadvantaged localities of Mumbai
The women from Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, Parsi, Jain, Sikh communities from backward areas along with their family members attended the program. They were informed about the benefits of nutrition as well as cleanliness.
During the day-long program, the ministers interacted with members of different minority communities. They interacted with the Muslim community at Anjuman-I-Islam Girls School, Bandra, with Jain, Sikh, and Buddhist Communities, at Mahatma Gandhi Seva Mandir Hall, Bandra, with the Chrisitan community, at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School, Sion, and with Parsi community at Parzor Foundation at The Dadar Athornan Institute in Dadar.
Addressing members of the minority communities, Smriti Zubin Irani said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has turned women’s issues into a social issue. Discussions on maternal health are no longer just confined to women. Nowadays, men are also thinking about women’s health. Pregnant Women’s health should be a joint responsibility of the family”, she added.
Irani said that “Poshan Abhiyaan” is a social movement. Along with the Ministry of Minority Affairs, we are today trying to take it forward amongst the minority communities. Each citizen has to resolve to give it due importance in his or her life. If we want to be able to tell the world that not a single child in India suffers from malnutrition, then members from all communities need to come forward. Cleanliness too is very important for nutrition”.
Naqvi said that “Decisions with Delivery” has been the commitment of the Government led by PM Narendra Modi. The Government has been working on a war-footing to provide affordable and quality health services to the people, on a war-footing. It has taken several measures to ensure the health and well-being of the people, especially children and women from all sections of society. The “Poshan Abhiyaan” has become an effective mass movement to eradicate malnutrition in the country especially among children, adolescent girls, pregnant women, and lactating mothers.
On the occasion, the ministers visited an Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) in Dharavi. They distributed nutrition kits and fruit baskets to pregnant women, lactating mothers, and children suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM). Irani interacted with various citizens receiving benefits under the scheme and also visited their homes. She also inaugurated a Digital “Guddi Gudda” Board at the ICDS premises. The board is used for updating, monitoring, and giving visibility to birth statistics, under the “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” (Save the girl child, educate the girl child) initiative.
The campaign was attended by many prominent people who included: Members of Parliament-Poonam Mahajan, Gopal Shetty, Manoj Kotak, and Rahul Shewale, MLAs- Mangal Prabhat Lodha and Ashish Shelar, Indevar Pandey, Secretary, Union Ministry for Women and Child Development, Renuka Kumar, Secretary, Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, S K Dev Verman, Secretary, National Commission for Minorities(NCM) and CMD, the National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation (NMDFC), Rubal Aggarwal, Commissioner, Integrated Child Development Scheme, Maharashtra Government, Anjuman-I-Islam president Dr. Zahir Kazi, Bombay Parsi Punchayet Chairperson Armaity Tirandaz.
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