Programme to tackle malnutrition in govt schools serving up some healthy results

New Delhi: A year since the implementation of a programme to tackle malnutrition in Delhi government schools, the Directorate of Education has recorded some positive results. DoE claimed an increase of 5kg and above among 68.3% of the students and a height increase of 15 cm and above among 43.4% of the students.In November 2022, DoE conducted a survey of the height and weight of each government school student. The findings were analysed using WHO-Anthro Plus software. A total of 4,08,033 students in over a thousand schools were identified as falling in the red zone of suspected malnourishment.Collaborating with Laadli Foundation, DoE began an intervention to tackle the problem. The measures taken included an introduction in the midday meal of alternative dishes with high nutritional value, mini snacks break, maintenance of height and weight record of each student, parental counselling, especially at the parent-teacher meetings, and regular health check-up. For the mini snacks break, each school had its own menu, mostly pulses, sprouts and fruits.“The improvement in height and weight is a big impact of the intervention. We have been able to reinforce positive behaviour among the students,” said Himanshu Gupta, director, DoE. “This has increased awareness among all stakeholders towards the importance of nutritive food. There was a positive development among students regarding increased attention span, physical activity and comprehension. The attendance of the students falling in the red zone also improved.”In the next phase of the intervention, blood tests and nutritional assessment of students still in the red zone are being conducted. Tata 1mg is collaborating with DoE on this. Once the initial test is conducted, proper medical diagnosis will be done to determine if the child has anaemia or has other medical issues. Necessary medical advice will be provided to them.Among the districts, it is mostly in North-East that the students have been found to be malnourished. In Government Girls’ Senior Secondary School, Karawal Nagar, around 1,597 students have been identified as malnourished and around 1,659 in GBSSS, Karawal Nagar.“We have also formed a monitoring wing to ensure the project is properly implemented,” added Gupta. “Each officer has been designated to visit two schools every day and file a report from each of the schools. There will be routine monitoring of the height and weight of students. Parental counselling and the mini snacks breaks will also continue.”And then, as the project goes into its second phase, the analysis of the health of new students joining the schools with the WHO-Anthro Plus software will continue. “DoE’s ultimate aim is to end malnutrition among government school students,” said Gupta.