Healthy Food to Pregnant Women Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. The States/UTs are responsible for the implementation of Scheme including provision of supplementary nutrition to children (6 months to 6 years), pregnant women and lactating mothers as per the nutritional norms and guidelines of the Scheme. The Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) of this Ministry in collaboration with the State Governments/ UTs carries out periodic checks to ensure prescribed standards with reference to nutritional norms are adhered to and maintained properly. The supplementary food provided under ICDS is analysed through four quality control laboratories of FNB located at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. The States/UTs have also been advised to identify and involve Government Food Analysis Laboratories to get the SNP sample analysed. The evaluation of ICDS including SNP component was done by National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) in 2010. Various schemes for providing nutritious food and health facilities to pregnant women are as under:- (i) ICDS for providing nutritious food to pregnant women & lactating mothers in the form of Take Home Ration (THR). (ii) Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojna(IGMSY) a conditional cash transfer scheme to give maternity benefit of Rs.6000/- to pregnant women & lactating mothers. (iii) Village Health and Nutrition Days and Mother and Child Protection Card for addressing the nutrition concerns in children, pregnant women and lactating mothers. Village Health and Nutrition Days (VHNDs) are held monthly at village level in Anganwadi Centre to increase the awareness and bring about desired changes in the dietary practices including the promotion of breastfeeding. (iv) National Iron Plus Initiative (NIPI) to combat the public health challenge of iron deficiency anaemia prevalent across the life cycle. (v) Janani Surksha Yojana (JSY), a national conditional cash transfer scheme, incentivizes women of low socio-economic status for institutional delivery at public health facilities and assists her in fulfilling nutritional needs during pregnancy. This information was given by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Smt. Krishana Raj in the Rajya Sabha today.
