Shillong, NOV 1: Fresh items will be added under Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) to enable their distribution through anganwadi centres, said Adviser to Social Welfare department, Paul Lyngdoh, on Friday.
Announcing this, Lyngdoh also informed about the Asian Development Bank sanctioning Rs 20 crore per year for the enhanced SNP.
The enhanced SNP will include both hot cooked meal (HCM) and take home rations (THRs).
The anganwadi centres (AWCs) will provide hot meals twice a day and two eggs per week for children aged 3-6 years.
Meanwhile, he said, state government will supplement the funding gaps in this regard.
Referring to a recent review meeting of Social Welfare department chaired by Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, Lyngdoh said all villages not having any AWC will be covered by next year.
“We have roughly about 1700 such villages. As of date there are 6000 plus AWCs and the remaining 1700 will be covered within March 2026,” he said.
The adviser also announced the government’s plan to upgrade 2000 AWCs with solar panels and communitise them, shifting ownership from the government to the community.
“The centres will integrate learning activities, recreation, and other programmes,” he said while announcing that a pilot project covering 200 locations will be launched.
To strengthen Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), Lyngdoh said the government will create a post for a lady supervisor, known as an assistant to Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs).
The Chief Minister will undertake quarterly review visits to the centres and track outcomes.
“The chief minister has also stressed on micro level detailing and outcome tracking of the various initiatives and he would undertake quarterly review visits to the centres. We have come up with a detailed action plan which will cover the activities I had mentioned to you,” he said.
The government has cleared the appointment of a nutritionist who will collect samples and report to the department, Lyngdoh added.
