The state has sought expertise from United Nations to control malnourishment in the tribal district of Nandurbar, the worst affected area.
The dept of women and child development, on Tuesday, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) and Jamshedji Tata Trust to launch a pilot project to care for the severely malnourished children in Nandurbar.
The project is the outcome of the 5-point agenda laid down by CM Prithviraj Chavan, and minister for women and child development Varsha Gaikwad.
It's part of a wider initiative that began in Nov 2013 as the 'Maharashtra Alliance Against Malnutrition' (MAAM). It provided a platform for all stakeholders—young elected representatives, business houses, academic bodies and media—under one roof.
The MoU was signed by Ujjwal Uke, principal secretary, dept of women and child development; R Venkataramanan, executive trustee, Tata Trust, and Ms Rajeshwari Chandrasekar, chief of Unicef-Maharashtra, who represented Unicef India chief Louise Georges Arsenault.
Varsha Gaikwad said: "Malnutrition remains the biggest threat to survival, growth and physical and mental development of children."
According to Comprehensive Nutrition Survey Maharashtra 2012, the incidence of children with Severe Acute Malnutrition is 4.5%; the prevalence of stunting among children under two has decreased from 39% (2006) to 23% (2012). In the same period, the prevalence of wasting has decreased from 19.9% to 16.3%, and that of underweight children from 29.6% to 22.6%.
15-day campaign against diarrhoea
On June 28, the state govt and Unicef launched a fortnight-long campaign, 'Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight (IDCF)'. It will end on Aug 8. Of 7,00,000 children below-5 affected with diarrhoea, 4,700 die every year in Maharashtra.
"IDCF will mobilise communities, health personnel and political leaders to prioritise investment for controlling diarrhoea. It aims to create awareness about the low-cost diarrhoea treatment," said Suresh Shetty, state health minister.
The focus in the first week will be on activities to control diarrhoea, and on infant and young child feeding practices in the second week to coincide with the 'World Breast Feeding week'.
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