State-Level Nutrition Awareness and Capacity Building Programme Held at Malout
‘Poshan Vi Padhai Vi’ Tier-2 Training to Strengthen Holistic Child Development
Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh/Malout-
With a strong focus on the holistic development of children, the Punjab Government is implementing large-scale capacity building and awareness programmes at the state level under Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) and the Nutrition Mission, aimed at strengthening nutrition, health and foundational learning outcomes.
In this series, a State-Level Nutrition Awareness and Capacity Building Programme was organised today at Malout under the Nutrition Mission, in which Punjab’s Minister for Social Security, Women and Child Development, Dr. Baljit Kaur, participated as the Chief Guest. The programme was organised under the “Poshan Vi Padhai Vi” Tier-2, Phase-2 training initiative, with the objective of enhancing the capacity of grassroots-level functionaries and ensuring effective implementation of nutrition-related schemes.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. Baljit Kaur said that the Punjab Government is giving special priority to the Women and Child Development sector. She informed that 5,000 Anganwadi workers have already been recruited, while 6,000 more Anganwadi workers and helpers will be recruited in the coming days. She further stated that 1,000 Anganwadi centres have been modernised, and basic facilities are being provided at every centre so that these centres function at par with schools and children face no inconvenience.
The Minister emphasised that strengthening maternal and child health, nutrition and early education remains a top priority of the State Government. She highlighted that nutrition and ECCE are closely interlinked, as meaningful learning and overall development of children is not possible without proper nutrition.
Dr. Baljit Kaur further stated that the Nutrition Mission is a multi-departmental initiative, involving coordinated efforts of the Health, Women and Child Development, Education, Drinking Water and Sanitation departments. She underlined the crucial role of Anganwadi workers and frontline staff, stating that continuous training and capacity building are essential to ensure that benefits reach the intended beneficiaries.
She added that under the leadership of Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann, the Punjab Government is fully committed to the holistic development of children. The government is taking policy-level and field-level initiatives to ensure quality nutrition, health and early education, thereby laying a strong foundation for a healthy and progressive Punjab.
To further strengthen ECCE, the Department of Social Security, Women and Child Development is implementing a comprehensive state-level training campaign for Anganwadi supervisors and workers, in line with the National Education Policy and early childhood education frameworks. The focus is on play-based, child-centric and age-appropriate learning for children aged 3 to 6 years.
For effective training delivery, the cascade training model has been adopted, under which state-level master trainers train district- and block-level Anganwadi workers. Special emphasis is being laid on weekly play-based calendars, daily schedules, observation-based assessment tools and the Aadharshila Curriculum (2024) to strengthen foundational learning and numeracy skills.
Senior officers from various departments, district and block-level officials, subject experts and field-level functionaries participated in the programme. The training sessions focused on implementation of nutrition and ECCE initiatives, data-based monitoring, behaviour change communication, community awareness, and addressing grassroots-level challenges.
Officials informed that similar training and awareness programmes are being organised in a phased manner across all districts of the state, with the objective of achieving nutrition, health and foundational education targets for mothers and children within the stipulated timeframe. The programme concluded with a collective resolve to further strengthen inter-departmental coordination for the holistic development of mothers and children and to contribute towards building a healthy and developed Punjab.