Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Smriti Zubin Irani will chair the Zonal Conference of States and Union Territories Governments of the Western region in Mumbai tomorrow, i.e., on 12th April 2022.
6 States and Union Territories of the Western Region namely Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Dadra, Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu will participate in the meeting.
In order to ensure the optimum impact of the recently launched 3 Missions- POSHAN 2.0, Vatsalya, and Shakti, the Ministry of Women and Child Development has initiated a series of Zonal Consultations with State Govts and Stakeholders in each region of the country.
The zonal meeting in Mumbai is the fourth in the series. The first such meeting was held in Chandigarh on 2nd April, the second in Bengaluru on 4th April, and the third in Guwahati on 10th April 2022.
Empowerment and protection of women and children who constitute 67.7% of India’s population and ensuring their wholesome development in a safe and secure environment are crucial for the sustainable and equitable development of the country and for achieving transformational economic and social changes.
To achieve this objective, Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recently approved 3 important Umbrella Schemes of the Ministry to be implemented in mission mode, viz., Mission Poshan 2.0, Mission Shakti, and Mission Vatsalya. These 3 Missions will be implemented during the 15th Finance Commission period, 2021-22 to 2025-26.
The Schemes under the Umbrella Missions are Centrally Sponsored Schemes that are implemented by the State Governments and UT Administrations on a cost-sharing basis as per cost-sharing norms. Scheme Guidelines are being shared with the States and UTs.
The Objective of the Ministry of Women and Child Development
The prime objective of the Ministry of Women and Child Development is to address the gaps in State action for women and children.
It also seeks to promote inter-ministerial and inter-sectoral convergence to create gender equitable and child-centered legislation, policies, and programs.
It aims to provide women and children with an environment which is accessible, affordable, reliable, and free from all forms of discrimination and violence.
In this direction, the objectives under the schemes of the Ministry are sought to be achieved with the support of State Governments and UT Administrations which are responsible for the administration of the schemes on the ground.
The Objective of the Zonal Conferences
The objective of the Zonal Conferences is to sensitize State Governments and UT Administrations on the 3 Umbrella Missions of the Ministry namely Mission PPOSHION 2.0, Mission Shakti, and Mission Vatsalya.
It also seeks to facilitate proper implementation of the Schemes over the next 5 years in the true spirit of cooperative federalism to ensure that the transformational social change envisaged under the Missions is accomplished for the benefit of women and children of the country.
3 Umbrella Missions of the WCD Ministry
Given below are the three umbrella schemes of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. They all are Centrally Sponsored Schemes.
Mission POSHAN 2.0 is an integrated Nutrition Support Programme. It seeks to address the challenges of malnutrition in children, adolescent girls, pregnant women, and lactating mothers through a strategic shift in nutrition content and delivery and by the creation of a convergent eco-system to develop and promote practices that nurture health, wellness, and immunity.
Poshan 2.0 will seek to optimize the quality and delivery of food under the Supplementary Nutrition Program. Poshan 2.0 will bring 3 important programs/schemes under its ambit, viz., Anganwadi Services, Scheme for Adolescent Girls, and Poshan Abhiyan.
Mission Shakti envisages unified citizen-centric lifecycle support for women through integrated care, safety, protection, rehabilitation, and empowerment to unshackle women as they progress through various stages of their life. Mission Shakti has two sub-schemes ‘Sambal’ and ‘Samarthya’.
While the “Sambal” sub-scheme is for the safety and security of women, the “Samarthya” sub-scheme is for the empowerment of women.
The objective of Mission Vatsalya is to secure a healthy and happy childhood for every child in the country; foster a sensitive, supportive, and synchronized ecosystem for the development of children; assist States and UTs in delivering the mandate of the Juvenile Justice Act 2015; achieve the SDG goals.
Components under Mission Vatsalya will include statutory bodies; service delivery structures; institutional care and services; non-institutional community-based care; emergency outreach services; training and capacity building.