Survey identifies 18,914 children with severe acute malnutrition in Maharashtra

Of these, the survey has found that 1,578 children need the Nutritional Rehabilitation Centre’s intervention.

3 min readPuneOct 7, 2021 12:50 PM IST

Varied diets are an important contributor to protecting children from illness and fatality related to malnutrition. (File)

A survey to identify malnutrition children in Maharashtra has listed as many as 18,914 under severe acute malnutrition (SAM) and 97,876 moderate acute malnutrition (MAM). Over 59 lakh children below six years were surveyed in the last one and a half months as part of the state Women and Child Development department campaign, ‘Nandurbar pattern’.

Of these, the survey has found that 1,578 children need the Nutritional Rehabilitation Centre’s intervention.

“The children identified in the survey will be given proper treatment,” State Integrated and Child Development Scheme commissioner Rubal Agarwal told The Indian Express.

According to the survey, there are 253 children with moderate acute malnutrition in Pune district and 43 need intervention via nutritional rehabilitation centres. Most of the children with MAM and SAM were from Melghat Gadchiroli, Yavatmal, Parbhani, Jalgaon and Nandurbar districts.

Read | Melghat malnutrition: Bombay HC questions state govt over insufficient measures to stop deaths of children

As Anganwadi centres were shut due to Covid restrictions, meals were sent home to their families. “We have now urged the state to reopen Anganwadi centres so that children with malnutrition can be called in a staggered manner adopting Covid appropriate behaviour,” Agarwal said.

The Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) under Anganwadi Services and the POSHAN Abhiyaan are important programmes to address the issue of malnutrition in the country, and recently the state health department has also released guidelines towards strengthening end to end management of SAM children.

Rajalakshmi Nair, nutrition specialist with UNICEF (Maharashtra), said the survey is timely as children with comorbid conditions can be identified before a possible third Covid wave. “It is important to screen the children and ensure quality planning in each district,” Nair said.

Pune ZP to use child tracker app

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The Pune Zilla Parishad has sought technological support from the Maharashtra Emergency Medical Services to enable them to maintain digital health records of each child in the district. As part of this child tracker app, children below 6 years will be monitored for their health conditions. Each child will be assessed based on their height, weight, body mass index.

Dr Dnyaneshwar Shelke, chief operating officer of MEMS, said that they had taken up an initiative three years ago to set up digital health records of each child at Ashram schools in tribal areas of Amravati, Nandurbar and other districts. After the clinical assessment, children are identified who require medical intervention. This is an annual activity, Dr Shelke said.

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Ayush Prasad, CEO of Pune ZP, said the system brings automation to the process of detection. Tracking the health status and development of children is essential to ensure proper nutrition and health of children to prevent infant and child mortality. Current systems allow us to track the child even if the family migrates.

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“We are working systematically to ensure that the district is malnourished free. Early tracking of the health problems of children would help us identify children early who need surgical and medical interventions,” Prasad said.

Anuradha Mascarenhas

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a Senior Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, she is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism regarding healthcare, science and environment and research developments. She also takes a keen interest in covering women's issues . Professional Background Education: A gold medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and a Master’s degree in Literature. Author: She authored the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the former Chief Scientist at the WHO. Key Focus: She combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human-interest narratives. Awards and Recognition Anuradha has won several awards including the Press Council of India's national award for excellence in journalism under the gender based reporting category in 2019 and the Laadli Media award (gender sensitivity -2024). A recipient of the Lokmat journalism award (gender category-2022), she was also shortlisted for the RedInk awards for excellence in journalism-2021. Her debut book At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan the inaugural chief scientist of World Health Organisation was also nominated in the Popular Choice Category of JK Paper AUTHER awards. She has also secured competitive fellowships including the Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), the Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious 2025 India Cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.” Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) 1. Cancer & Specialized Medical Care "Tata Memorial finds way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells" (Nov 26, 2025): Reporting on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease. Discipline, diet and purpose; How a 97-year-old professor defies ageing'' (Nov 15, 2025) Report about Prof Gururaj Mutalik, the first Head of Department at Pune's B J Government Medical College who at 97 credits his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose. 2. Environmental Health (The "Breathless Pune" Series) Long-term exposure even to 'moderate' air leads to chronic heart, lung, kidney issues" (Nov 26, 2025): Part of an investigative series highlighting that even "safe" pollution levels are damaging to vital organs. "For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was 6-8% jump in medicine sales" (Nov 23, 2025): Using commercial data to prove the direct link between air quality and respiratory illnesses in Pune. 3. Lifestyle & Wellness News "They didn't let cancer, diabetes and heart disease stop them from travelling" (Dec 22, 2025): A collaborative piece featuring survivors who share practical tips for traveling with chronic conditions. At 17, his BP shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study flags why child and teen hypertension doubled between 2000 and 2020'' (Nov 12,2025)--A report that focusses on 17-year-old-boy's hypertensive crisis and reflects the rising global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents. 4. Scientific Recognition & Infrastructure For promoting sci-comm, gender diversity: IUCAA woman prof highlighted in Nature" (Nov 25, 2025): Covering the global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics. Pune researchers find a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe'' (December 3, 2025)- A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe was just 1.5 billion years old , one of the earliest to have been observed so far. Signature Beat: Health, Science & Women in Leadership Anuradha is known for her COVID-19 reportage, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed insights into the Covishield and Covaxin trials. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, often profiling women researchers who are breaking the "leaky pipeline" in STEM fields. Her writing style is scrupulous, often featuring interviews with top-tier scientists and health experts from various institutions. ... Read More

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