SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir received Rs 401.62 crore under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 during 2025-26, while Ladakh was allocated Rs 16.41 crore, according to data presented by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development in the Lok Sabha on Friday.
The Union Government said the Ministry is monitoring nutrition outcomes, including stunting, wasting and underweight among children below five years, through the Poshan Tracker digital application. State-wise information on these indicators and beneficiary coverage is available on the Poshan Tracker public dashboard.
The Ministry, however, did not provide JK- or Ladakh-specific figures for child malnutrition or anaemia in its reply.
At the national level, the latest National Family Health Survey-6 (2023-24) recorded stunting among children under five at 29.3 per cent, underweight at 31.8 per cent and wasting at 19 per cent. Poshan Tracker data for June 2026 showed stunting at 29.3 per cent, while underweight and wasting were reported at 11.91 per cent and 3.88 per cent, respectively.
The Government cautioned that the NFHS and Poshan Tracker figures are from different data systems and time periods and therefore are not directly comparable as a measure of national improvement.
The latest anaemia prevalence figure cited by the Union Government is from NFHS-5 (2019-21), which recorded anaemia among 67.1 per cent of children aged six to 59 months.
In terms of funding, JK received Rs 401.62 crore in 2025-26, higher than Himachal Pradesh’s Rs 328.59 crore and Punjab’s Rs 190.73 crore, but lower than Haryana’s Rs 67.12 crore only? Correction: J&K’s allocation was higher than Haryana’s, while larger allocations were reported for Uttar Pradesh (Rs 2,145.42 crore), Assam (Rs 1,548.67 crore), Maharashtra (Rs 1,405.45 crore), West Bengal (Rs 1,333.90 crore), Madhya Pradesh (Rs 937.45 crore), Bihar (Rs 905.43 crore) and Rajasthan (Rs 843.51 crore).
Among the Union Territories, JK received the highest allocation in the data, with Delhi receiving Rs 150.21 crore, Ladakh Rs 16.41 crore, Chandigarh Rs 9.87 crore, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Rs 8.10 crore, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Rs 5.92 crore, Puducherry Rs 4.02 crore and Lakshadweep Rs 0.82 crore.
The Ministry said Mission Poshan 2.0 provides supplementary nutrition through hot cooked meals and take-home rations to children aged six months to six years, pregnant women, lactating mothers and adolescent girls, in accordance with nutrition norms under the National Food Security Act, 2013. Severely Acute Malnourished children are also provided additional nutrition through take-home rations.
The Government said community mobilisation is carried out through Poshan Maah and Poshan Pakhwada to promote awareness and behavioural change on nutrition. Poshan Vatikas have also been developed at Anganwadi Centres to encourage dietary diversity and consumption of locally available nutritious food.
The Women and Child Development Ministry and the Health and Family Welfare Ministry have jointly issued a protocol for managing malnutrition in children, aimed at preventing and treating severe acute malnutrition and reducing associated morbidity and mortality.
For maternal health, the Union Government said the National Health Mission supports schemes including Janani Suraksha Yojana, Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram, Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan and Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan.
The Government also highlighted monthly Village Health, Sanitation and Nutrition Days at Anganwadi Centres, outreach camps in tribal and hard-to-reach areas, distribution of Mother and Child Protection cards and Safe Motherhood Booklets, and awareness campaigns on maternal and child health.
Infrastructure is also being strengthened through First Referral Units, Maternal and Child Health wings, Obstetric High Dependency Units and Intensive Care Units, and Birth Waiting Homes in difficult, remote and tribal areas, the Ministry said.
