Addressing nutritional deficiency in rural children 

NGO project promotes consumption of locally cultivable available vegetables and fruits

Pratham Mysore, an NGO working to promote quality education in government schools, has embarked on a project to address nutritional deficiency in schoolchildren in rural areas.

The project - ‘’Pratham Poshana” - is being taken up at Muthathi village in T.Narsipur taluk of Mysuru district on a pilot basis and entails promoting the consumption of locally cultivable available vegetables and fruits.

Initiated by Ratna Rajaiah who has authored books on recipes and culinary delights that can be dished out with greens and vegetables cultivated in the backyard, the project also entails a series of talks under the theme ‘’Aaaharadinda Aarogya’’ to inspire the womenfolk to get involved as it entailed their children’s health.

The JSS Krishi Vignana Kendra at Suttur is supporting the initiative and popularising the concept of kitchen garden and cultivating vegetables for domestic consumption besides distributing seedlings. A periodical health checkup of children covered under the programme is also a part of the pilot project.  

‘’Once we have the baseline data of what children lack in terms of nutrition or vitamin deficiency, then moving forward it can be compared with the progress in their health a few months down the line and whether the project has made any difference in addressing their nutritional deficiency’’, said Ms. Ratna Rajaiah.

The village identified for the pilot is a paddy and sugarcane growing area and even those engaged in diary farming do not have the tradition of consuming milk and curds as all of it is sold to earn income but in the process the children are deprived of nutrition in their formative years, said Ms. Ratna Rajaiah.