In the first 12 days of the 6th edition of Rashtriya Poshan Maah celebrations, over 6 crore activities have been registered on the Jan Andolan dashboard across the country, the Ministry of Women and Child Development stated on Saturday.

Poshan Maah is celebrated annually in the month of September under the POSHAM Abhiyaan to promote behavioural changes, particularly as regards consumption of essential nutritious foods extending to the grassroots level. Poshan Maah and Poshan Pakhwada, which is observed in March-April, are designed to target specific beneficiaries, namely, Pregnant Women, Lactating Mothers, Adolescent Girls, and Children up to 6 years of age.

The Ministry stated that various key Ministries and Departments come together to collaborate for maximum outreach. Ministries such as Rural Development, Health & Family Welfare and Panchayati Raj are leading with the Ministry of Rural Development alone recording more than 6 lakh activities under Rashritya Poshan Maah 2023, it said.

It mentioned that the current Poshan Maah 2023 campaign is focusing on key themes, including Exclusive Breastfeeding and Complementary Feeding, Swasth Balak Spardha/Growth measurement and sensitization of tribal communities on Millet/Local food/Traditional Food for addressing malnutrition challenges like anemia, among others.

Further, the Ministry informed that in terms of specific sensitization activities, the Swasth Balak Spardha/Growth measurement drive has registered the highest number of activities at 15 lakh, followed by sensitization activities on growth monitoring and “Food Resource Mapping” within the village boundaries, which stand at close to 14 lakh activities. Additionally, anaemia camps for children, adolescent girls and women in tribal districts recorded more than 12 lakh activities, with 11 lakh home visits focusing on ECCE, especially engaging parents.