According to government figures, Arunachal, Puducherry, Ladakh, Punjab and UP used only about 30% of the funds allocated to them
State and Union Territory governments have used only 56% of the total funds released under the Poshan Abhiyan, or Food Mission, over the past three years, the government told parliament on Wednesday.
Out of a total of 5,312 billion disbursed by the center between fiscal years 2019-2021, a sum of ₹ 2,985 crore was used, said Minister of Women’s and Child Development Smriti Irani in response to a question on Rajya Sabha.
The five states and UTs with the lowest occupancy were Arunachal Pradesh (25.14%), Puducherry (28.03%), Ladakh (31.2%), Punjab (33.62%) and Uttar Pradesh (33.73%) ).
West Bengal, which refused to adopt Poshan Abhiyan, has received 267 billion yen over the past three years but has still not been used.
The five states and UTs that used the funds the most were Nagaland (98.34%), Meghalaya (98.14%), Mizoram (94.22%), Sikkim (93.13%), and Dadra and Nagar Haveli (88.2%).
Launched in March 2018, Poshan Abhiyan aims to reduce the challenges of stunted growth, underweight and low birth weight by 2% per year; and anemia in young children, adolescents, and women by 3% per year through 2022.
The minister said a poll conducted by the states showed that the total number of “severely acutely malnourished” children in the country is less than 15 lakh.
“For the first time we have teamed up with states to get exact numbers. Years ago there was a statement in this house that we have eight million (or 80 lakh) plus SAM children in the country. However, with medical assistance and surveillance, that number fell to less than 1.5 million when states conducted a survey, “Ms. Irani said.
