Odisha Dy CM Reviews Women & Child Development Goals, Calls For Time-Bound Action

(MENAFN- IANS) Bhubaneswar, Oct 16 (IANS) Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida on Friday stressed the need for effective interdepartmental coordination, robust monitoring and time-bound implementation of action points emerging from the national-level departmental summit on women and child development held in New Delhi to ensure measurable outcomes and tangible benefits for women and children in Odisha.

Parida, who also holds the Women and Child Development portfolio, chaired a review meeting in Bhubaneswar to outline the State's goals in four key areas, including nutrition and early childhood development, child protection, women's safety and women's empowerment.

The goals follow the Departmental Summit convened by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development in New Delhi on October 8 and 9 in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

According to an official statement, the review focused on translating the summit's action points into measurable outcomes through time-bound interventions and stronger implementation mechanisms.

The State will soon organise a state-level summit on the four thematic areas to deliberate on priorities, strengthen coordination among departments and accelerate implementation.

Parida emphasised the need to strengthen existing systems, address implementation gaps and improve the quality, accessibility and effectiveness of public services for women and children.

Under nutrition and early childhood development, the State aims to improve Take-Home Ration and hot-cooked meals, strengthen nutrition monitoring through the Poshan Tracker, and ensure early identification and referral of children with severe acute malnutrition.

Other priorities include improving Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), preschool learning at Anganwadi Centres, locally sourced nutritious food, parental engagement and children's transition to formal schooling.

Under Mission Vatsalya, the government will focus on identifying vulnerable households, promoting family-based care over institutionalisation, strengthening rehabilitation and aftercare for children leaving institutional care, and improving accountability through regular reviews and better integration of child-protection data.

For women's safety, the State plans to strengthen One Stop Centres and Women Helpline 181, improve coordination among police, health, legal and rehabilitation services, and enhance support for survivors.

Child marriage prevention measures will include community participation, village-level vulnerability mapping and targeted campaigns in 12 high-prevalence districts.

Workplace safety will also be strengthened under the POSH framework and SHe-Box.

Under women's empowerment, the goals include expanding crèches and hostels for working women, strengthening Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, and improving convergence between the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana and Odisha's Mamata scheme.

The State will also operationalise a Women's Economic Empowerment Framework across all 30 districts, tracking women's workforce participation, earnings, entrepreneurship and economic agency through relevant data, district-level targets and stronger monitoring mechanisms.

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