PREGNANT WOMEN'S HEALTH STUDY SUPPORTS NANJANGUDU
TALUK'S ANGANWADI SCHEME FOR MATERNAL WELL-BEING
Bhavya. P1, Somashekar2
Department of Social Work JSS College of Art's
Commerce and Science Ooty Road Mysore, India1
Assistant Professor and HOD JSS College of Art’s,
Commerce and Science, Ooty Road, Mysore-25, India2
bhavya.p.nayak@gmail.com1, mswsomashekar@gmail.com2
KEYWORDS |
ABSTRACT |
anganwadi,
pregnancy, nanjangudu taluk. |
Health
support during pregnancy for the Anganwadi scheme to promNutritiontion and
health education (NHE) activities under integrated child development services
(ICDS) is encouraged to participate Mothers of children younger than six
years. Pregnant and lactating women go through the excellent health of
government schemes. This study aimed to determine and analyze the role of
health support during pregnancy in the Anganwadi scheme with reference to
Nanjangudu Taluk. This study used a qualitative method where the researcher
prepared a self-generated questionnaire on a Google form to determine various
parameters. The sample consisted of 20 female and male representatives from
Nanjangudu Taluk. The purposive simple random sampling technique was adopted
to select samples from different blocks, and based on the study results
revealed that both facility providers are not sensitive to issues related to
rural villages/women. Anganwadi plays an essential role in the healthy
development of pregnant women in rural areas. Because Anganwadi is a critical
factor in successfully implementing programs and schemes and reaching
beneficiaries in rural areas, this research has implications for the
existence of Anganwadi, can increase access and availability of quality food,
teach about heal Nutritiontion Nutritiontion, and can improve the health of
mothers and babies. |
DOI: 10.58860/ijsh.v2i5.47 |
|
Corresponding Author: Bhavya. P
Email: bhavya.p.nayak@gmail.com
INTRODUCTION
Anganwadi is a
type of rural mother and child care center in India. They were started by the
Indian government in 1985 as part of the Integrated Child Development Services
program to combat child hunger and malnutrition (Maneela et al., 2022). Anganwadi
means "courtyard shelter" in Indian languages (Deutsch et al., 2017).
A typical
Anganwadi center provides primary health care in Indian villages. It is a part
of the Indian public health care system (Narayan et al., 2019). Primary
health care activities include contraceptive counseling and supply, nutrition
education and supplementation, and preschool activities. The centers may be
depots for oral rehydration salts, essential medicines, and contraceptives (Saxena et al., 2015).
As many as
13.3 lacks (a lakh is 100,000) Anganwadi and mini-Anganwadi centers
(AWCs/mini-AWCs) are operational out of 13.7 lakh sanctioned AWCs/mini-AWCs, as
of 31 January 2013 (Bobade & Khamkar, 2017). These
centers provide supplement Nutrition, non-formal preschool educatiNutritiontion
and health education, immunization, health check-up, and referral services, of
which later three services are provided in convergence with public health
systems (Gupta et al., 2013).
The
responsibilities of Anganwadi workers (AWW) are highly significant. They ensure
antenatal and postnatal care for pregnant women, immediate diagnosis, and care
for newborn children and nursing mothers. They administer the immunization of
all children below the age of 6 years (Sandhyarani & Rao, 2013).
In addition,
they supervise the distribution of supplement Nutrition to children below the
age of 6 and pregnant and nursing women (Sandhyarani & Rao, 2013). Monitoring
regular health and medical check-ups for women and children is one of their key
responsibilities. The Anganwadi workers often take on the role of a teacher and
aim to provide preschool education to children between 3 and 5 years (Jawdekar, 2013).
Anganwadi worker Responsibilities
The Ministry
of Women and Child Development has laid down guidelines for the
responsibilities of Anganwadi workers (AWW) (Ghosh & Sengupta, 2022). These
include showing community support and active participation in executing this
program, conducting regular quick surveys of all families, organizing
per-school activities, providing health and nutrition education to families,
especially pregnant women, on how to breastfeed, etc., motivating families to
adopt family planning, educating parents about child growth and development,
assist in the implementation and execution of Kishori Shakti Yojana (KSY) to
educate teenage girls and parents by organizing social awareness programs,
etc., identify disabilities in children, and so on (Achumi & Joseph, 2022).
Benefits of Anganwadi
In many ways,
an Anganwadi worker is better equipped than a physician to reach the rural
population. Since the worker lives with the people, she is better positioned to
identify the cause of health problems and counter them. She has an excellent
insight into the health status in her region. Secondly, though Anganwadi
workers are less skilled or qualified than professionals, they have better
social skills, thus making it easier to interact with people. Moreover, since
these workers are from the village, they are trusted, which makes it easier for
them to help the people. Finally, Anganwadi workers are aware of the ways of
the people, are comfortable with the language, know the rural folk personally,
etc. This makes it very easy for them to figure out the problems the people
face and ensure that they are solved (Singh & Masters, 2017).
UNICEF and
the UN Millennium Development Goals of reducing infant mortality and improving
maternal care are the impetus for increasing focus on the Anganwadi. Workers
and helpers must be trained per WHO standards (Richter et al., 2017).
Integrated Child Development Services
(ICDS) Scheme
Integrated
Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme is the world's most extensive
community-based program (Rao & Kaul, 2018). The scheme
targets children up to the age of 6 years, pregnant and lactating mothers, and
women 16-44 years of age. The scheme is aimed to improve the heal Nutrition,
and education (KAP) of the target community. Launched on 2 October 1975, the
scheme has completed 25 years of operational age. The article describes, in
brief, the organization, achievements, and drawbacks of this national program.
It also suggests various thrust areas for its betterment and further
improvement.
The main thrust of the scheme is on
the villages where over 75 percent of the population lives. Urban slums are
also a priority area of the program.
Objectives
The main objectives of the scheme are
i.
Improve the health and
nutritional status of children 0–6 years and pregnant and lactating mothers.
ii.
Reduction in the incidence
of their mortality and school dropout
iii.
Provision of a firm
foundation for the child's proper psychological, physical, and social
development.
iv.
Enhancement of the
maternal education and capacity to look after her health Nutrition and that of
her family
v.
Effective policy
coordination and implementation coordination among various departments and
programs aimed to promote child development.
Beneficiaries
1.
Children 0–6 years of
age
2.
Pregnant and lactating
mothers
3.
Women 15–44 years of age
4.
Since 1991 adolescent girls
until the age of 18 years for non-formal education and training on health
Nutrition.
Services:
The program provides a package of services and
facilities.
Like:
1.
Complement Nutrition
2.
Vitamin A
3.
Iron and folic acid
tablets
4.
Immunization
5.
Health check-up
6.
Treatment of minor
ailments
7.
Referral services
8.
Non-formal education on
health Nutrition to women
9.
Preschool education to
children 3–6-year-old and
10.Convergence of other supportive services like water, sanitation,
etc.
Schemes for women:
Smt heads the Ministry of Women and
Child Development. Maneka
Sanjay Gandhi, Minister;
Mr. Shankar Aggarwal is the Secretary, and Mr. A.B. Joshi and Ms. Preeti Sudan
are Additional Secretaries of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The
activities of the Ministry are undertaken through seven bureaux. The Ministry
has six autonomous organizations working under its aegis (Verma, 2021).
a.
National Institute of
Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD)
b.
National Commission for
Women (NCW)
c.
National Commission for
Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR)
d.
Central Adoption
Resource Agency (CARA)
e.
Central Social Welfare
Board (CSWB)
f.
Rashtriya Mahila Kosh
(RMK)
Some Important Programs for Child Development:
a. Integrated Child
Development Services schemes
b. Mathrupoorna
c. Training of Anganwadi
workers and helpers.
d. Construction of Anganwadi
buildings.
e. Nutrition programe for
adolescent girls (NPAG)
f. Bhagyalakshmi
Population in India
Table 1.
Population in India
The current population of India in 2023 |
1,416,866,648(140.76 crores) as of 24 March 2023 |
Density |
473.42 people per km |
Growth rate |
0.68% |
Birth rate |
16.42 birth / 1000 population |
Pregnant in India |
2.7 crore pregnancies every year |
Nutrition program for pregnant,
lactating women:
Nutrition plays a significant role in an individual's overall
health; psychological and physical health status is often
dramatically impacted by malnutrition. India currently has one of the highest
rates of malnourished women among developing countries. A study in 2000 found
that nearly 70 percent of non-pregnant women and 75 percent of pregnant women
were anemic regarding iron deficiency (Kaur,
2014). One of the main drivers of malnutrition is gender-specific selection of the
distribution of food resources.
A
2012 study by Tarozzi found the nutritional intake of early adolescents to be
approximately equal. However, the rate of malnutrition increases for women as
they enter adulthood. Furthermore, (Murugan
& Manimekalai, 2016) found that malnutrition increased for
ever-married women compared to non-married women.
Maternal
malnutrition has been associated with an increased risk of maternal mortality
and childbirth defects. Addressing the problem of malnutrition would lead to
beneficial outcomes for women and children.
Importance of the study:
This study mainly focuses
on the role of Anganwadi in the Nutritional Development of Pregnant Women in
rural areas, also with the following aspects.
a. It helps to understand the
role and responsibility of Anganwadi in the Development of Rural Areas.
b. It is necessary to analyze
the importance of Anganwadi in implementing a government scheme.
Aim of the study:
The
study aims to understand the role of health
during pregnancy support in the Anganwadi scheme with reference to Nanjangudu
Taluk.
METHOD
The
respondents for this study include students from the social work department at
chamarajanagara university suvarnagangotri chamarajanagara and another rural participant.
The purpose of the study is together information on health during pregnancy
support to Anganawadi scheme with reference to Nanjangood taluk.
This research is based on qualitative research
where the researcher has prepared a self-constructed questionnaire on Google
form to find out the various parameters of “A Study on Health during pregnancy
support to Anganawadi scheme with reference to Nanjangood taluk. The
questionnaire consists of seven statements that have multiple choice. The
respondents had to fill the one multiple-choice option in Google form.
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
The researcher
has ten years of experience in teaching at chamarajanagara university,
suvarnagangotri chamarajanagara. This experience created many questions about
present postgraduate students and rural participants. Therefore, the aim of
conducting this study is to gain knowledge of health during pregnancy and
support the Anganawadi scheme with reference to Nanjangood taluk. Students and
partition-er point of view of students after data collection, the analysis and
interpretation follow.
Table 2. shows that Are
you a BPL cardholder.
SL NO |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100% |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
3 |
APRIL |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100% |
Graphic 1. BPL Card
Holders
The table shows that 100% of
respondents belong to BPL (Below Poverty Level) Families.
Table 3. shows that Your Husband's Profession
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Coolie |
9 |
45 |
2 |
Employee |
11 |
55 |
3 |
Agriculture |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
2. Husband Proffesion
The
table shows that 45% of respondents' husbands work as coolie, and 55% are
Employees in a factory.
Table
4. shows that you are working with Women
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
0 |
0 |
2 |
No |
20 |
100 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic 3. Working Woman
The table shows that 100% of
respondents are homemakers.
Table 5. shows that you
have a separate Anganwadi Building.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic 4. Separate
Anganwadi Building
The table shows that 100% of
respondents said a separate Anganwadi building exists.
Table 6. shows how many
days Anganwadi will work in a week.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
5-6 Days |
0 |
0 |
2 |
6 Days |
20 |
100 |
3 |
3-4 Days |
0 |
0 |
4 |
3Days |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
5. Anganwadi Working Days
The table shows that 100%
of respondents say Anganwadi works six days a week.
Table
7. shows that Anganwadi has a facility for a weighing Machine and sitting mat.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
6. In Anganwadi Weighing Machine & Mat
The table shows 100% of respondents
saying there is a weighing Machine and mat in Anganwadi.
Table 8 shows what you
know about the "Maatru Poorna" Scheme.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
7. Information about “Maatru Poorna” Scheme
The table
shows that 100% of respondents say they know about the "Maatru
Poorna" scheme.
Table 9. shows Do
Anganwadi workers, given i
information about the
"Maathru Poorna" Scheme.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
8. Information from Anganwadi about “Maatru Poorna”
The table shows that 100% of
respondents said that Anganwadi workers were given information about the
"Maathru Poorna" Scheme.
Table 9. shows that
Anganwadi workers were given information
about facilities available for pregnant women.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
9. Information about Facility for Pregnant Women
The
table shows that 100% of respondents say that Anganwadi workers were given
information about the "Maathru Poorna" Scheme.
Table
10. shows that Anganwadi workers given
information about
facilities available for pregnant women.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
10. Information about Facility for Pregnant Women
The table shows 100% of
respondents saying that Anganwadi workers are given information about
facilities available for pregnant women.
Table
11. shows that Anganwadi workers provide
Medical assistance at
regular intervals of time.
SL
No |
Option |
Respondents |
Percentage |
1 |
Yes |
20 |
100 |
2 |
No |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
20 |
100 |
Graphic
11. Medical Asisstance in Regular Interval of Time
The table
shows that 100% of respondents are saying that Anganwadi workers provide
Medical Assistance at regular intervals of time. The following are the
significant finding that the researcher came across in the study on the role of
health during pregnancy support in the Anganwadi scheme with reference to
Nanjangudu Taluk. Anganwadi plays a Vital role in the Nutritional Development of
pregnant Women in rural areas in a rural area; Anganwadi is a critical factor
in Successfully implementing the program and scheme and reaching the
beneficiaries in a rural area.
a.
The highest numbers of respondents were pregnant Women than
Lactating Mothers.
b.
The study reveals that (100 %) of the respondents are BPL
card Holders.
c.
The study reveals that (100%) of the respondents are homemakers.
d.
The majority (55%) of the respondent's Husbands are Employees
in the Industry.
e.
Most (100%) of the respondents know about the "Maathru
Poorna" Scheme.
f.
The majority (100%) of the respondent responded that
"Nutritional Food" is provided Daily.
g.
The highest majority (100%) of the respondents are satisfied
with the "Nutritional Programme."
h.
The majority (100%) of the respondents were satisfied with
the Role and Responsibility of Anganwadi.
i.
Most (100%) respondents said Anganwadi would work for 6 Days.
j.
The highest majority (100%) of the respondents are satisfied
with Anganwadi Facility.
k.
The majority (100%) of the respondents said they have a good
relationship with Anganwadi regarding the Facility and Information Anganwadi
gave.
l.
The highest majority (100%) of the respondents are satisfied
with Nutritional Food, Cleanliness, and medical assistance given by Anganwadi.
m.
The highest majority (100%) of the respondents said that the
Meetings about Medical assistance are Organised by Anganwadi at regular
intervals.
n.
Most (100%) respondents said they go to Anganwadi daily to
Have Nutritional Food under the "Maatru Poorna" scheme.
CONCLUSION
Malnutrition
is a significant problem in children of Age 6. It is due to lack Nutrition in
children from birth, which means from their mothers to children. Hence, the
Nutritional Programme for Pregnant women through Anganwadi in rural areas plays
a Vital Role. By the study, Anganwadi plays a Vital role in the Nutritional
Development of pregnant Women in rural areas. Anganwadi is a key factor in
Successfully implementing the program and scheme and reaching the beneficiaries
in rural areas. So, Anganwadi is best to implement the scheme, program, and
projects in rural areas. Thus, Anaganwadi plays a vital role in the Nutritional
development of Pregnant women in rural areas, also the role and responsibility
of Anganwadi.
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