Introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 2011, the UPA government’s Food Security Bill is finally going to be discussed in the current (Budget) Session of Parliament. The proposed legislation is now slated to see many additional amendments from the government, following criticism from the States, NGOs and diverse stake-holders working on access to food and child health. Attempt here is to summarise in a Q & A format the...

-The Times of India A decade after a CAG audit revealed how a scheme to help infants and young children was failing, a fresh report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday says the number of malnourished children exceeds the 40% mark in 10 states as on March, 2011. The audit of the flagship Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) says 49% children in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar (82%), Haryana (43%), Jharkhand (40%), Odisha (50%), Rajasthan...

-The Hindu India has registered higher infant and child mortality rates than Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Further the country’s position on the measure of the percentage of underweight and severely underweight children during the period 2006-10 was more than twice than that in the Sub-Saharan African region. This was revealed in the Comptroller and Auditor General of India’s performance audit of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme — Union Ministry of...

-PTI State governments have irregularly diverted funds aggregating to Rs 57.82 crore from the central government's flagship Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) to activities not permitted under the programme, a CAG audit has found. In its report on the ICDS for 2012-13, tabled in the Parliament today, the CAG criticised the ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) for "inadequacy" in monitoring systems under the scheme to combat child malnutrition. The report said...

-DNA Funds meant for health and nutrition of children are being spent on procuring fax machines, photocopiers, gas stoves and cookers. Adding salt to injury is that all these gadgets are lying idle and rusting, due to lack of electricity, telephone lines and for want of gas connections. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) which audited the performance of Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme worth Rs. 15,460 crore annuallyhas found shortfall...