Ranchi- As the Jharkhand government gears up for the monsoon session, a persistent issue from five years ago remains unresolved: the promise to provide daily eggs in anganwadis.

Despite an official order issued earlier this year, many children in Jharkhand’s government-run anganwadis have yet to receive the vital nutritional supplement.

The Right to Food Campaign, Jharkhand—a collective of civil societies, activists, and researchers dedicated to food security issues—held a press conference on Monday to address a significant concern: the failure to provide eggs in anganwadis.

The volunteers said that in March 2024, the Champai Soren administration issued an order (number 278/2012-657) directing anganwadi centers to incorporate one egg per day into the hot cooked meal (HCM) provided to children, starting from April.

The order was intended to improve child nutrition by allowing anganwadi workers to source eggs locally and provided a supplementary allocation of Rs 6 per egg. However, with the market price of eggs ranging between Rs 7-10, this allocation falls short, complicating implementation.

Implementation Challenges and Budget Constraints

Field investigations reveal that the promise remains largely unfulfilled. Many anganwadi workers are unaware of the new directive, while others who are aware have struggled to implement it due to insufficient funds.

The lack of public awareness about the order further exacerbates the situation, leaving many children without the promised eggs. Despite the order being in effect for three months, the delivery of eggs remains sporadic and inconsistent, pointing to a significant gap between policy and practice.

In March 2023, the Standing Committee on Women and Children highlighted in a report to the Lok Sabha that the Ministry of Women and Child Development's budget share had remained stagnant at 1% over the past five years.

This figure decreased to 0.6% after the Committee’s report. The budget for Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 has also been inadequate compared to the schemes it has replaced.

In real terms, the ministry’s budget has been cut by 40% over the last decade when adjusted for inflation. Additionally, a massive underutilization of funds was noted, with only 72% of the allocated budget being spent nationally in 2022-23.

Jharkhand’s Budget Shortfall

A similar trend is evident in Jharkhand. The Outcome Budget for 2022-23 sanctioned INR 1399 crores for the Department of Women and Child Development, but only INR 906 crores was allocated, and merely INR 763 crores was spent—54% of the sanctioned and 84% of the allocated amount.

This discrepancy highlights a troubling lack of justification for why funds are not being utilized to meet the basic nutritional needs of children in anganwadis.

Impact on Child Nutrition

According to NFHS-5 data, Jharkhand faces severe child malnutrition issues, with 40% of children under five being stunted and underweight, and 22% wasted.

The child mortality rate under five is alarmingly high at 45%. Eggs, a rich source of protein and essential nutrients, could play a crucial role in addressing these nutritional deficiencies. The Right to Food Campaign’s distribution of eggs to hundreds of anganwadis last October demonstrated their significant benefits.

The ongoing failure to deliver on this promise has led to calls for more decisive action. If the Jharkhand government continues to delay, the campaign has announced plans to home-deliver eggs to ministers during the monsoon session as a dramatic demonstration of the unmet needs of the state's children.

Why Eggs?

Eggs are extremely nutritious: Eggs have all the essential nutrients, except vitamin C. They are more nutritious than other vegetarian options, such as fruits, milk, and soya chunks.

Eggs are easy to manage: Eggs have a longer shelf-life than the other food items with similar levels of nutrition. Their supply and distribution can be easily monitored by simply counting them. Further, eggs cannot be adulterated.

Children love eggs: Eggs are hugely popular amongst children. According to the National Family Health Survey 5 conducted in 2019-21, only five percent of Jharkhand's population doesn't eat eggs.

Eggs boost school attendance: According to a recent survey conducted by Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti, school attendance rates are very poor in Jharkhand -just 58 percent in upper primary classes. The popularity of eggs has a potential of boosting this abysmal rate of attendance.

Boost to the local economy: Provision of locally procured to eggs can give a huge boost to local poultry farming and allied activities.