In just around three months a thousand malnourished children have been adopted in one of the new districts of Chhattisgarh. Sakti, where a large and rampant population was found to be underfed by the first district magistrate and collector, now 65 of 200 kids adopted in the first lot are already showing improvement.
Over the last three months, IAS Nupur Rashi Panna, the Collector and DM of the 33rd district of the state started the Snehit programme to overturn the malnourishment quotient in her district, “monitoring each case with affection”.
NOURISHING WITH AFFECTION
The 2015 batch officer established an innovative way to detect and tackle the problem at hand.
The underfed children between the age group of zero to six, already recognised by the Women and Child Welfare Department, were adopted by administration officials — at least two kids each by a hundred staff members.
The district official assigned was tasked to personally visit the child at his/her home to ensure he or she was consuming regular ready-to-eat food provided by the government, besides other nutritious food. They were also advised to monitor the family and bring about positive behavioural change to support the kid’s growth.
“To date, 200 children have been adopted by 100 officers, out of which 65 children have already started showing results,” Ms. Panna told Indian Masterminds in an exclusive interview.
POSITIVE RESULT
Now, Snehit has 1000 officials for 1000 children, as results have been gradual and positive, Ms. Panna said.
In a bid to start at the beginning, her administration also organised evening health jan-choupal and night health schools to raise awareness and educate pregnant women about food, health and nutrition.
The District Collector also adopted a child. Abhijeet, a three-year-old toddler with medical issues, did not develop speech faculty and was often sick.
“We have referred Abhijeet to a paediatrician and he is getting both medical and social aid,” Ms. Panna said.
SNEHIT APP
In the next phase, Ms. Panna’s target is 2,000 of the around total 9,000 malnourished children who were detected by the state government department.
To accelerate the measures, the officer shared that tracking and monitoring have to improve.
“For better management, we have launched the “Snehit App”. Through this Android-based app, the administration gets accurate information about the development of malnourished children, along with other important information,” she added.
This has helped the officials better assess and take informed decisions. “The App bridges the communication gap between the government apparatus and the general population,” she said.
Direct communication has been established between family members and officials, which has proved to be the foundation for the success of Snehit, the Collector said, and she urged people, volunteer organisations, and public officials to join their effort and make Snehit a success.
