Pankaja Munde promises manna from above

Women and child development minister Pankaja Munde said her department has drafted a new policy wherein energy-dense micronutrient-based paste, which is used by astronauts, would be provided to under-privileged children to prevent malnutrition deaths in the state’s affected districts, such as Palghar.

Ms Munde said the department is consulting nutrition experts to prepare the new type of food for children, which will cater specifically to their needs.

When contacted by The Asian Age, Ms Munde said, “I don’t bother what people think about me and the chikki issue, but I am hugely concerned about children and their health. I am focussing on the health and well-being of tribal children in the light of reports that 600 children in Palghar district died from malnutrition.”

Elaborating on the scheme, which is in the pipeline, Ms Munde said, “In our own home, we never feed a small child the same food that elders eat. But there are lacunae in our scheme if we provide the same food to infants, children and their mothers.” Ms Munde said, “I have decided to provide energy-dense micronutrients to children across the state via anganwadis. I have drafted a policy, which is yet to be finalised and needs some modifications, but I have named it the ‘Jachcha-Bachcha’ scheme.”

She added: “I always wondered how astronauts survive in space with nutrient food that has provided in a paste form. Such food contains energy-dense micronutrients from where they derive energy.”

However, Ms Munde said that the food would not be exactly astronaut food. “But, we will take advice from nutrients experts,” she said. “The name of the scheme can be changed at the final stage when it will be put before a Cabinet meeting for its approval,” added the minister.