Poor spending on pre-school education kits irks ministry

Vikas Sharma

Tribune News Service

Jammu, August 20

Poor expenditure on procurement of both pre-school education (PSE) kits and medicine kits by J&K for children in the age group of 0-6 years under the flagship scheme— Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS)— has irked the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development. 

PSE kit includes flash cards for story telling, stuffed toys, kitchen set, wheel toys, simple puzzles, colours, numbers, alphabets, picture books of animals, vegetables, flowers etc whereas medicine kits comprised of cotton bandages, absorbent cotton rolls and ointment for minor injury.

Sources said J&K had spent Rs 415.23 lakh for the procurement of PSE and medicine kits whereas in 2015-16, no expenditure was incurred to procure the same. In 2016-17, only Rs 39.81 lakh was spent by J&K. 

An amount of Rs 599.17 lakh was approved for 2017-18 to procure PSE and medicine kits while the details of expenditure for  2018-29 are yet to be ascertained.

The meagre expenditure had resulted in prevalence of underweight children under the age of 5 years in the anganwadi centres across the state which was taken seriously both by the Central Ministry as well as the Parliamentary Standing Committee.

“The Parliamentary Standing Committee has asked the authorities in J&K to ensure availability of PSE and medicine kits in over 29,000 anganwadi centres across J&K”, an official said.

“Both the ministry and committee have recommended the state to give adequate attention and priority to the important component of ICDS scheme. 

It was observed that ICDS functionaries played an important role in rendering services to the targeted beneficiaries efficiently only when the PSE and medicine kits were available in sufficient quantity at all centres”, the official said.