SMT. ANITA BADHEL INAUGURATES 2 NAND GHARS IN UDAIPUR, DEDICATES 318 ANGANWADI CENTRES IN KHUSHI

So far, more than 100 “Nand Ghars” have been constructed across three states and 2911 Anganwadi Centres have joined “Khushi” Project…

On 4th August, 2017, 2 more “Nand Ghars” - Dhawaditalai and Main Rawa were inaugurated in Rawa village of Girwa Block at Udaipur District by Chief Guest – Smt. Anita Bhadel – Hon’ble Minister of Women and Child Development, Government of Rajasthan and now 20 Nand Ghars have been constructed in Udaipur district with 100 more Nand Ghars in pipeline.

During the inaugural ceremony, Smt. Bhadel said “For the progress of the country, along with infrastructure development, it is important to focus on  human development. Anganwadis strengthens the foundation of children below the age of seven years - their nutrition, health and education. Government and Vedanta Hindustan Zinc have come forward with well-equipped facilities for both mother and child including skill training for women in the form of ‘Nand Ghar’. Now communities have to take the responsibility of Nand Ghars to make it successful”.

To make the project more cohesive, “Nand Ghar” act as a focal area for immunisation, gender sensitisation and maternal care. It also aims to enhance the learning environment through an e-learning module and skill enhancement program for women where they will undergo entrepreneurship training, including skill enhancement, to start their own micro enterprise with credit linkages, thereby increasing their contribution towards the Indian economy.

During her visit to Udaipur, Smt. Bhadel also launched “Khushi” project in Chawand village wherein 318 Anganwadi Centres of Sarada Block have been included under the project as part of Phase-2.

During the launch program, Smt. Bhadel said “Through Khushi project, Anganwadi program will be strengthened to improve attendance, health and the well-being of Anganwadi children. Now communities have to come forward and support it by actively participating in it".

In year 2015, Hindustan Zinc signed the MoU with Government of Rajasthan to strengthen 3055 Anganwadis of the ICDS Department in 5 districts i.e. Udaipur, Rajsamand, Chittorgarh, Bhilwara and Ajmer of Rajasthan under its flagship project “Khushi” in 2 phases.

Last year under “Khushi” project, Hindustan Zinc reached out to 2295 Anganwadi centres in 5 districts of Rajasthan in phase 1. So far in Udaipur district, Hindustan Zinc with partner NGO – Seva Mandir has included 1157 Anganwadi Centres under “Khushi” Project.

VEDANTA HINDUSTAN ZINC OPENS 2 NAND GHARS IN AJMER, RAJASTHAN

Delivering long-term benefits to communities by strengthening the foundation of children below the age of seven years - their nutrition, health and education… 

The report says, there are 7.5 crore underprivileged children living in remote rural areas, below the age of seven years, who are in need of proper nutrition, health care and education. Our primary focus, therefore, is to start at the grass root level with the holistic development of children and women, who form the future of our nation.

This is where, Vedanta came up with the concept of “Nand Ghar" designed in partnership with the ministry of women and child development. It is an extension to the existing Anganwadi initiative for providing a better environment to the children of India by addressing issues relating to pre-primary education, health care, nutrition and economic empowerment for women in rural India.

Mr. Anil Agarwal – Chairman, Vedanta Group believes “In order to secure the future of India, we have to safeguard the present. To strengthen the foundation of children, it is important to address issues relating to pre-primary education, health care, nutrition for children and economic empowerment for women in rural India”.

Taking his vision forward, Vedanta has joined hands with the Government to revamp 4000 anganwadi centres across India under the Project ‘Nand Ghar’. Today, more than 100 “Nand Ghars” across three states has resulted in marked improvement in attendance, learning abilities and school readiness, by deploying e-learning modules in education and soft skills in collaboration with world-class partners and they are now equipped with TVs, solar panels and toilets. 

On 31^st July, 2017, 2 “Nand Ghars” - Khanpura & Parbatpura have also been inaugurated in Ajmer District by the Chief Guest - Ms. Anita Bhadel – Hon’ble Minister of Women and Child Development, Government of Rajasthan and with this 10 Nand Ghars have been constructed in Ajmer district with 25 more Nand Ghars are in pipeline.

During the inaugural ceremony, Ms. Bhadel said “Government and Vedanta Hindustan Zinc have done their bit by providing well equipped facilities for primary education, nutrition services along with related healthcare services for both mother and child including skill training for women, it’s now the communities have to come forward and support it by actively participating in it.” She also mentioned that if a mother anchors the responsibility of her child’s education, the benefit will percolate to her next 7 generations.

To make the project more cohesive, “Nand Ghar” act as a focal area for immunisation, gender sensitisation and maternal care. It also aims to enhance the learning environment through an e-learning module and skill enhancement program for women where they will undergo entrepreneurship training, including skill enhancement, to start their own micro enterprise with credit linkages, thereby increasing their contribution towards the Indian economy.

The Nand Ghars are in line with Prime Minister of India’s vision of social development and will prove to be a stepping stone for building the future human capital as productive, passionate and persistent towards the growth.

Also present on the occasion were Mrs. Neelima Khetan – Head CSR, HZL, Mr. Sampat Sankhla – Dy. Mayor, Ajmer,  Mrs. Anupama Tailor – Dy. Director, Women & Child Development, Mr. Nitesh Yadav - ICDS, Mr. Raes Ahemad - Counsellor along with Anganwadi workers and Hindustan Zinc’s CSR representatives.

VEDANTA KHUSHI - NDTV - 90% OF THE CHILDREN IN INDIA ARE DEPRIVED OF ADEQUATE NUTRITION

Highlights

•          Most children under the age of 2 years do not have access to good food
•          Worst performing states when it comes to a good diet are in North India
•         A lot of this also depends on the health of the mothers

According to the reports of a leading Indian NGO called CRY, most children in India under the age of 2 years do not have access to good quality food and adequate nutrition. The NGO based their report on the figures of the recent data released by the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) (2015-16 which shows that Nine out of 10 children in the age group of 6 to 23 months do not receive an adequate diet. 

This data is very disappointing as kids who do not have a healthy start and are under-nourished bear the brunt of it in adulthood. According to Komal Ganotra, Director of Policy, Research and Advocacy for CRY (Child Rights and You),"Illnesses in children and lack of adequate and appropriate nutrition is a vicious cycle which needs constant attention through preventive as well as promotive approaches.”

It has been further recorded that four out of five worst performing states when it comes to a child’s diet are from North India. Rajasthan is at the bottom where only about three per cent children have access to good food and in Uttar Pradesh the figure is slightly higher where five per cent children are well nourished. As far as the National capital is concerned, despite being one of the most equipped cities, only six per cent of the children in the city receive proper nutrition. Even Tamil Nadu which has the highest percentage of children receiving adequate nutrition, the number does not cross 31 per cent.

Ganotra also attributes this to the health of the mothers and says that the child’s health depends on the nutrition supplied to him or her in the mother’s womb. But the figures in this case too are dismal. Fifty per cent of the pregnant women (15-49 years) were found to be anaemic according to the NFHS-4 and only 21 per cent received complete antenatal care. Poor health of mothers is affecting the physical as well as the mental development of their children. 

"The Integrated Child Development Scheme, which addresses nutritional needs of children in an early age (under 6) and expectant mothers, has the right intent to ensure a solid foundation for children when maximum brain development occurs.It is non-negotiable for the state to ensure adequate budget and robust implementation mechanism for greater convergence of health and nutrition services for every child in the country," Ganotra concluded. 

http://food.ndtv.com/health/90-of-the-children-in-india-are-deprived-of-adequate-nutrition-1678873  

VEDANTA KHUSHI - TIMES OF INDIA - ONLY 3% UNDER-5 KIDS ON PROPER DIET

Rosamma Thomas I TNN I April 7, 2017 I Jaipur

As Rajasthan celebrates the World Health Day on Friday, malnourishment among children has cropped up as a big problem area that needs to be addressed without any delay.

To mark the occasion, the NGO, Child Rights and You (CRY), released data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS 2016-17) (see graphic) in which the state has emerged as a definite laggard, with only 3% of the under-five children receiving "adequate diet", defined as breast-fed kids receiving a minimum of three feeds and others getting milk or milk products at least twice a day.

One study shows that malnutrition is so widespread that mothers have failed to recognize it.

In early 2015, after screening 12 lakh children, the government had identified over 4,000 of them as 'severely acutely malnourished' (SAM).

A rapid survey by the women and child development department and UNICEF found over 35% of the under-five children as malnourished, with the largest number reported from Baran, among Sahariya tribals.

In a paper published in Economic and Political Weekly (EPW) in August last year, Pavitra Mohan, Kumaril Agarwal and Priyanka Jain pointed to the "normalization" of malnutrition in Rajasthan. Over 60% of the mothers who claimed their children were normal were wrong as their kids were malnourished.

Economist and Nobel Prize winner Angus Deaton has pointed to poor sanitation and infections as eroding nutrition levels in India.

Besides, the children's diet lacks protein and fat. Malnutrition leaves them vulnerable to disease and early death. According to NFHS data, 41 babies from every lakh die in the state and 51 do not survive beyond the age of five.

The EPW paper, based on research done in the southern districts of Udaipur, Dungarpur, Banwara and Rajsamand, with a high tribal population prone to out-migration, showed that about 20% of the mothers from nearly 500 households surveyed reported the loss of a child.

The authors found that "only about 28% of the children consumed milk. Almost none of them had consumed egg, meat or fish over the last 24 hours. Fewer than 10% reported consuming appropriate and nutritional food items such as 'daliya' (porridge), rice, pulses and vegetables or fruits, and even those had it in small quantities. A significant proportion of children were given tea, biscuits and and 'namkeen' (fried snacks)". One mother reported that she only bought milk when the child fell sick. "Otherwise, we cannot afford milk."

Fifty-eight per cent of the mothers studied by the EPW authors were malnourished as well, struggling to cope with the heavy demands of motherhood and housework.

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Trupti Rane of CRY said, "Malnourishment in early years is directly linked to maternal health. Poorly nourished, expecting and lactating mothers pass on their deficiencies to the child. Having newborns breastfed within the first hour of birth is critical for baby nutrition. Colostrum (the first milk of the mother), extremely rich in nutrients and antibodies, ensures basic nutrition and immunization. Universalization of anganwadi centres and robust growth monitoring measures can lead to a lasting solution of this issue."

The article also pointed to the failure of government provisioning - only a fourth of the people studied sought healthcare from a public facility.

"Nutritional support offered by PDS remains low, both due to poor functioning and the scheme being limited to grains and sugar (with no pulses or oil)," the authors note. Only 3.6% of women reported working under the MGNREGA scheme.

Chhaya Pachauli of NGO Prayas said, "Both public health and ICDS infrastructure are in awful shape. Outreach services and counselling which could go a long way in preventing malnutrition are hardly prioritized. Government may introduce endless schemes, but until there's a boost in budget for health and nutrition, not much improvement can be expected. Efforts to strengthen health, nutrition, sanitation and PDS need to go hand in hand."

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/only-3-under-5-kids-on-proper-diet/articleshow/58057402.cms

HINDUSTAN ZINC GIVES SCHOLARSHIP TO 50 ENGINEERING STUDENTS UNDER 'YASHAD SUMEDHA SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM'

Being a responsible metal & mining company,  Hindustan Zinc has a strong focus towards uplifting the communities residing near is business locations. One such initiative is 'Yashad Sumedha Scholarship Program' where  Hindustan Zinc has sponsored engineering degree of selected 50 students who belong to household having annual income of less than Rs 1 lakhs. In this process, Sumedha Foundation has come forward and supported.

Hindustan Zinc in identifying these selected 50 students who are appearing in 1st year of their Engineering degree in different Government Engineering Colleges of Rajasthan. Hindustan Zinc organized Yashad Sumedha Scholarship Distribution Ceremony on 23rd December, 2016 at Head Office, Udaipur. All selected 50 students where 12 of them are girls were given scholarship cheques by Senior Management of Hindustan Zinc ‐ Mr. Amitabh Gupta – CFO, HZL, Mr. Vikas Sharma – COO Smelters, Mr. Dilip Pattanayak – HR Head, HZL and Mr. Ramakrishnan Kasinath – Chief Commercial Officer, HZL.

VEDANTA KHUSHI - VEDANTA READIES RS 400-CR FUNDING FACELIFT FOR ANGANWADIS

The Vedanta Foundation, the philanthropic arm of metal and mining major Vedanta, will revamp 4,000 anganwadi centres across India by equipping them with TVs, solar panels and toilets.

The foundation will fund the modernisation drive with over Rs 400 crore, for which it has partnered with the Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD), it said in a statement.

The first model Anganwadi, Nand Ghar, was inaugurated by Union Minister for WCD Maneka Gandhi today, along with Vedanta Group Chairman Anil Agarwal, at Hasanpur village in Sonipat district of Haryana.

Inaugurating the centre, Gandhi said: "This Nand Ghar model will provide targeted delivery of supplementary nutrition services, along with related healthcare services for both mother and child, including skill training for women."

The Minister hailed Vedanta's efforts in this regard.

"The Ministry of WCD and the Vedanta Group have come together to construct 4,000 Anganwadi buildings in different parts of the country. Nand Ghar is an extension to the existing anganwadi initiative and will be Vedanta Group's endeavour to provide better environment to children of India," said Agarwal.

Vedanta's Nand Ghar project aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision and commitment to providing quality education for children and skill development for women in the entire country, he added.

The Vedanta Foundation has already collaborated with over 3,000 anganwadi centres in Rajasthan and Odisha by supplementing the services of the government and addressing the nutrition as well as the educational needs of over 1 lakh children. 

VEDANTA KHUSHI - HINDUSTAN ZINC ADOPTS 152 RURAL SCHOOLS IN RAJASTHAN TO IMPROVE INFRASTRUCTURE

112 schools were adopted earlier and the work is in progress, MoU for additional 40 schools signed today

To improve the infrastructure in government run rural schools Hindustan Zinc today signed the MoU with the District Education Department, Government of Rajasthan to adopt another 40 Government schools, including Girls’ Schools in Udaipur District, covering Udaipur City(10), Zawar(12), Maton(8) and Debari(10) areas.  The company had recently adopted 112 government schools in Bhilwara(72), Chittorgarh(20) and Rajsamand(20) to improve infrastructure facilities in these schools. 

The infrastructure work in these schools is already in progress.With signing of MoU to improve infrastructure in 40 schools in Udaipur, Hindustan Zinc shall be improving infrastructure in 152 schools with a cost of over Rs. 5 crore.

Many studies have pointed out that in order to improve the enrollment in government run schools, there is a dire need to improve the infrastructure, which includes not only repairs of the building but also sitting facilities, black-boards, electricity fittings and teaching aids. 

Through this project, Hindustan Zinc is providing basic infrastructure facilities like construction of boundary wall, class rooms, labs, installation of hand pumps, ceiling fans, coolers, construction of toilets, playground and furniture. Besides, scholarships to meritorious students will also be given and to keep up the green belt in schools, special plantation drives would be conducted.

UNICEF report has also stated that in rural Rajasthan, the female literacy is about 42 per cent. The sharp drop in secondary school attendance, particularly among girls is because of no drinking water facilities, lack of separate toilets for girls, no proper teachers, improper infrastructure etc. which is a matter of concern and requires immediate action.The company had two years back launched a social media campaign "Khushi" which brought out the issue of infrastructure improvement in schools in several on line debates and discussions. 

Taking the campaign forward, Hindustan Zinc decided to improve the infrastructure and give better facilities to students and improve their education quality."Hindustan Zinc is quite pleased with the progress of the work already initiated in 112 schools and looking forward to complete the work at the earliest. This project under the PPP model is expected to improve the quality of education in these schools", said Pavan Kaushik, Head of Corporate Communication.

To ensure the smooth running of project, a committee has been formed comprising members from HZL and members to be proposed by the District Collector. Based on the need of the school authority and the budget allotted, the project will be executed by Hindustan Zinc, Pavan Kaushik informed further.

Mrs. Krishna Chauhan - DEO(Secondary) thanked Hindustan Zinc for their support in bringing quality education in the government school by way of taking up the project towards improving the infrastructure. Ms. Sushma Sharma - Head CSR, HZL briefed all about the CSR initiatives being undertaken by Hindustan Zinc.  Mr. CSR Mehta - Head Corporate Relations spoke about the necessity to improve the infrastructure in the schools but also emphasized that the project should also monitored by Principals to ensure timely execution. Mr. Bhupendra Jain - DEO(Elementary) spoke about how Hindustan Zinc initiative is improving health and education in schools and has helped these children.

The MoU was signed today by Ms. Sushma Sharma, CSR Head on behalf of Hindustan Zinc and from Education Department by Mrs. Krishna Chauhan, District Education Officer (Secondary) and Mr.  Bhupendra Jain, District Education Officer (Elementary).  Also present on the occasion were Mr. CSR Mehta - Head Corporate Relations, Mr. Pavan Kaushik - Head Corporate Communication, Dr. S.S. Jamrani - Additional Director (Mines), Mrs. Hemlata Manaria - ADEO (Secondary), Dr. Suyesh Chaturvedi - Principal GSSS Gudli, Mrs. Nirja Rodgers - Principal GGSSS Bhupalpura and Mrs. Gauri Jamrani - Principal Ambamata Girls School.

VEDANTA KHUSHI: TIMES OF INDIA: RAJSAMAND KIDS’ LEARNING LEVEL HITS NEW LOW

Survey Also Highlights Increasing Drop-Out In Schools, Widening Teacher-Student Ratio

Rajsamand: The marble town Rajsamand which produces 90% of India's white marble has registered lowest basic learning levels among students in Rajasthan in the last five years. The percentage of students of classes III to V who can do subtraction has reduced from 41.3% in 2009 to 27.8% in 2013. The percentage of students who are out of schools has increased from 2.6% in 2009 to 5.2% in 2013.

As per the Annual Status of Education Report, widening pupil-teacher ratio, poor quality of mid-day meals and no water facility are prevalent in majority of schools. But so far no political party has shown concern to make these issues their poll plank.

Both BJP and Congress candidates are riding on issues like Pakistan, terrorism, Gujarat model, inflation, jobs, opening of new schools and hospitals. Manju Khatik, a social activists based in Rajsamand, said, “Three schools in two gram panchayats Bhatoli and Maduri were closed by the government this year. This decision caused 200 students to forcibly drop out. We have adopted 40 students and are teaching them at our NGO Jatan sansthan. The rest of the students are either working or have left the city in search of work,” said Khatik. She added that ignoring these issues has highlighted the indifference of political parties towards the city.

TOI asked the BJP national vice president and MLA Rajsamand Kiran Maheshwari to explain the reasons behind the decline in learning levels. She passed the buck on the Gehlot government for ignoring the education sector leaving a gross imbalance in the pupil-teacher ratio. “The district had faced government indifference for last five years. Here 130 schools don't have a single teacher leading to drastic fall in the learning levels,” said Maheshwari.

She assured that once the code of conduct is over, BJP government will begin the hiring of teachers to put the education system on track. Sitting Congress MP Gopal Singh Shekawat is promising complete implementation of Right to Education Act here. “Our party enacted this act and we are serious about providing free and compulsory education,” said Shekawat.

Hindustan Zinc Adopts 112 Rural Government Schools in Rajasthan

A momentous step in decreasing the rate of drop-outs in Rajasthan

Vedanta Hindustan Zinc has joined hands with Rajasthan Government by adopting about 112 rural Government Schools to provide improved educational and infrastructural facilities in the adopted schools. The company has already started the work in 72 schools at Bhilwara and 20 in Chittorgarh and a MoU to adopt 20 Government schools for 3 years has been signed recently in Rajsamand where the work will start soon.

UNICEF report claims that in Rajasthan, school attendance has been very low among girls and tribal children with female literacy as low as 40 per cent in the state. Also, the sharp drop in secondary school attendance, particularly among girls because of no drinking water facilities, lack of separate toilet for girls, no teacher, and improper infrastructure etc poses a big challenge and requires immediate attention.

"Hindustan Zinc is executing this project in 3 districts of Rajasthan – Bhilwara, Chittorgarh and Rajsamand", informed Pavan Kaushik, Head of Corporate Communication.

The Company is providing basic infrastructure facilities viz. Construction of boundary wall, class rooms & labs, installation of hand pumps, ceiling fans, coolers, construction of toilets & playground, furniture, to name a few in all the schools. The project is also providing scholarships to meritorious students. The company even encourages plantation drive to develop green belt in schools.

Also, for the smooth running of the project, a committee has been formed comprising 2 members from HZL, 2 from school and 1 member from District Magistrate. Based on the need of the school authority and assigned budget, the project will be executed by Hindustan Zinc.

Hindustan Zinc, a Vedanta group company in Zinc-Lead-Silver business has been working towards providing quality education with installation of 1000 computers and training in 682 government schools with remedial classes through its various educational programs in Rajasthan.