Gandhinagar, Sep 19 (IANS) Gujarat will constitute women-led Anganwadi Management Committees (AMCs) at every Anganwadi Centre in the state to increase community participation in nutrition, healthcare and early childhood education, while improving monitoring of services for children and mothers.
The decision, taken under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, is aimed at strengthening the grassroots implementation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0’.
The committees will focus on reducing malnutrition and developmental delays among children aged 0 to 6 years and supporting their overall development.
“Under the guidance of Women and Child Development Minister Manisha Vakil, each AMC will be constituted by the concerned Child Development Project Officer (CDPO). All seven members of the committee will be women, with the woman supervisor serving as Chairperson and the Anganwadi worker as Member-Secretary,” officials said.
The committee will also include an ASHA worker, two mothers of children aged 3 to 6 years enrolled at the Anganwadi, a woman member of a local Self-Help Group (SHG) or NGO/CSO, and a woman teacher from the nearest government primary school.
The arrangement is intended to improve coordination between Anganwadi, health, education and local self-government institutions, while giving the community a greater role in ensuring transparency and accountability in service delivery.
AMCs will meet once every two months at the Anganwadi Centre to review its functioning and the quality and timely delivery of services.
They will examine facilities including the Anganwadi building, drinking water, toilets, kitchen, storage, furniture, equipment, Teaching Learning Material (TLM), food quality and hygiene.
The committees will also monitor supplementary nutrition services, including Take Home Ration (THR) and Hot Cooked Meals (HCM), with attention to food quality, freshness, hygiene and nutritional standards.
They will review the growth of children aged 0 to 6 years, developmental milestones of children aged 0 to 3 years, health check-ups, identification of malnourished children, referrals and follow-up of referred cases.
Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) will form another key area of monitoring.
The committees will review daily pre-primary activities under ‘Aadharshila’, curriculum-based activities and Children’s Day theme-based activities, besides checking whether records relating to children’s development and monthly activities are maintained properly.
“The initiative will also help ensure that eligible beneficiaries are not left out of Anganwadi services. Through household surveys and community mapping, the committees will support identification of pregnant women, lactating mothers and children aged 0 to 6 years,” officials asserted.
They will monitor registration, attendance and inclusive services for children with special needs, besides ensuring that beneficiary information on the Poshan Tracker is updated.
AMCs will also encourage parents, volunteers, private organisations, corporate entities, NGOs, CSOs and other community groups to contribute time, skills and resources to Anganwadi Centres.
Support in the form of toys, clothes, activity materials and educational resources will be encouraged, while Panchayati Raj Institutions and Urban Local Bodies will be involved in establishing and maintaining Poshan Vatika or Nutri-Gardens.
At least four of the seven members, including the Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, will have to be present for a meeting.
Decisions will be taken by consensus wherever possible and by majority when required. Minutes, including attendance, discussions, decisions and follow-up status, will be recorded in the prescribed format and submitted to the concerned CDPO within seven days.
The CDPO will review the functioning of each committee at least twice a year. Major issues that cannot be resolved locally will be referred to the Programme Officer and CDPO.
The state government said the mechanism would bring mothers, ASHA workers, teachers, SHG members and other community representatives into the regular review of nutrition, child growth, early education, hygiene, infrastructure, beneficiary coverage and grievance redressal at Anganwadi Centres.
The initiative comes as the Centre has also focused on strengthening ECCE and nutrition services, with approval given in July 2026 for upgrading two lakh Anganwadi Centres as Saksham Anganwadis.
–IANS
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