Assam social welfare minister Akon Bora at the inauguration of the project in Nagaon. Telegraph picture

Nagaon, April 16: Dispur has come up with a hi-tech solution to end the chaos surrounding the distribution of nutritional food through the Anganwadi centres.

In keeping with the new system, children aged between 5 months and 6 years would be enrolled into the nearest Anganwadi centre. All relevant information about a child, including age, weight, contact address and a photograph with the mother, would be stored centrally in a server, monitored at the district level after each update. A unique ID number will be issued to each child.

The move, aimed at running Anganwadi centres more efficiently, was recently launched in central Assam district as a pilot project.

Each centre will routinely record the growth of each child and the records will be updated in the server every month. Doctors from the district level will go to the child’s doorstep if the expected growth is not achieved, even after regular release of service through the centre concerned.

Lack of transparency and a fake data nexus between a section of officers and grassroots workers has thrown the food distribution system through the Anganwadi centres, of the state into chaos.

According to official records, even after routine distribution of items through the social welfare department’s ongoing ICDS projects, infant mortality rate because of malnutrition is rising in the state.

A recent Unicef survey revealed that 88 infants (below 5 years) per 1,000 die in Nagaon every year, because of malnutrition-related diseases. It is 83.3 per 1,000 in case of Assam and below 80 per 1,000 in case of India. “Till the other day, each of the centres received food after providing just a list of children registered at the centre. Now online registration, unique ID number against them and digital growth chart will replace this. If children do not grow even after the doctor’s report, then faults in the distribution system might be responsible. If fake data of growth is provided that might be reflected in the Unicef annual record,” said Nagaon deputy commissioner P. Ashok Babu.

The pilot project that was launched in a Scheduled Caste-dominated area in the district plans to complete the first phase of work within this month.

“Each of the ICDS centres is instructed to submit the forms detailing all the information of the children against each such centre soon. Three assistants would be engaged at the district level for data entry and subsequent upgrade of growth records. Once that is completed, workers would be instructed to go for routine growth check-up on the fifth of each month and this will be entered in the server within the first week of each month,” Ashok Babu added.

A source said a big chain connecting grassroots-level workers and a section of senior welfare officers is pocketing a lion’s share of funds sent for purchasing food. Most of the centres submit fake data to receive more funds from the department. “If the new system is introduced, first of all, the fake data would be exposed. For the interest of escalation of growth record, workers might feed the children well. Eventually, faults would be reduced and beneficiaries will be connected directly to the service provider.”