by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
Special Report
Food for Children: PMO overrules two Union Ministries
States can give packaged food
Shot in the arm of packaged food industry
Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Nov 9
The running battle between some of the Central ministries and the states for years on whether the children be given cooked or packaged food has been resolved by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
While the Ministries of Health and Women & Child Development ministries have been strongly advocating the need for giving cooked food to children falling in the severely acute malnutrition category. However, many states including Maharashtra were pitching for ready-to-use food for them.
After prolonged discussions with the states, expert committee reports and obtaining the views of the concerned ministries, the Prime Minister's Office mandated that states be allowed to decide their own policy in this respect. If the states want to give packaged food, so be it. The decision of the PMO has come as a big shot in the arm for the packaged food industry. Some say it will be a big incentive to the big players in the market such as Patanjali Foods, ITC and others.
In fact, the PMO overruled directives of the two concerned union ministries who were against providing ready-to-use food to children. The PMO said that individual states be allowed to formulate their own policy to give nutritious food to children. The PMO, however, clearly stated that the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) where hot-cooked food is served to children in the age group of 3-6 years will continue unhindered. The scheme to provide food to children in the age group of upto three years will remain unchanged. But the states will have the discretion to give ready-to-use food to children above the age of 6 years.
The tussle began when the WCD Ministry headed by Maneka Gandhi issued a directive to states that the ready-to-use food is against the stated policy. Therefore, the matter went to the PMO where it was resolved. Even the health ministry was of the opinion that the nutritious food quality is better in the hot cooked food rather than in the Ready-To-Use Food packets. In fact, the ministry had set up an expert committee. However, the states contested the claim and wanted their own way to implement the scheme which is centrally funded scheme with Centre footing the 50% of funds to states. The Health Ministry had, in fact, stressed as early as in 2009 that the use of RUTF was not an accepted policy of the government. And in 2013, the centre had asked Jharkhand to stop distributing RUTF to malnourished kids. However, the inter-ministerial group also spoke in two languages when it said that the Packaged food was helpful only temporarily and would not affect eating habits of the family. The WCD letter also pointed to concerns that the use of RUTF may replace family foods habits that children should normally be eating.
