Parliament- Two lakh Anganwadi Centres have been approved

To address the challenges 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). It is a Centrally Sponsored Mission, where the responsibility for implementation of various activities lies with the States and UTs. The Mission is being implemented in all States and UTs in the country including high burden districts. The Mission includes beneficiaries; Children under 6 years of age, pregnant women, lactating mothers and adolescent girls (age 14-18 years in Aspirational Districts and North-Eastern region).

Under the Mission, two lakh Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) have been approved to be upgraded as Saksham Anganwadis for delivery of improved nutrition and for ECCE activities. These AWCs are equipped with better infrastructure such as LED screens, water filtration system, Poshan Vatika, Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) material and Building as Learning Aid (BaLA) paintings.

Further, 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. Extra Supplementary Nutrition (Take Home Ration) is also provided to Severely Acute Malnourished (SAM) children.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Women and Child Development Smt. Savitri Thakur in Lok Sabha in reply to a question.(UPDATED ON 24TH JULY 2026)