Aadhaar required for availing food under nutrition mission

The Mos for Women and Child Development Virendra Kumar said this would help in individual and Aadhaar-based tracking of children for nutritional outcomes.

Aadhaar registration is required for children availing food under the centrally-sponsored National Nutrition Mission, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday.

Government said the use of Aadhaar as identity document for delivery of services or benefits or subsidies simplifies the delivery processes. (Mint)

Union minister of State for Women and Child Development Virendra Kumar said the use of Aadhaar as identity document for delivery of services or benefits or subsidies simplifies the government delivery processes.

He said it brings in transparency and efficiency, and enables beneficiaries to get their entitlements directly in a convenient and seamless manner.

“Aadhaar obviates the need for producing multiple documents to prove one’s identity. Aadhaar would be unique identity of the beneficiaries,” he said during Question Hour.

The minister, however, said the beneficiaries’ not possessing Aadhaar card would be assisted by the field functionaries to obtain Aadhaar.

Till such time, they would be provided the Anganwadi services on the basis of alternative identification document, he said.

This would help in individual and Aadhaar-based tracking of children for nutritional outcomes and would also aid in area based tracking of under-nutrition status in the country, he said.

The government has recently approved the National Nutrition Mission to address the problem of malnutrition in the country at a total cost of Rs 9,046.17 crore for a period of three years from 2017-18 to 2019-20.

Replying to another question, Kumar said there was no survey to identify the fake registration of children in Anganwadi centres.