Goa seeks funds to hike allocation under nutrition scheme

Goa government has sought central assistance to increase the allocation provided to children and pregnant women under Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) implemented through various anganwadis (government-sponsored child care shelter), a senior minister said today.
State Women and Child Development Minister Dilip Parulekar told the State Legislative Assembly that the state government has moved a proposal to the union government seeking financial fund to increase quota under SNP.
He said that the state government, during the recently tabled budget, has already increased the allocation under the scheme from Rs 5 to Rs 9 for per child and from Rs 8 to Rs 10 for a pregnant woman per day.

The opposition benches, including Congress legislators Atanasio Monserrate, Jeniffer Monserrate and Vishwajit Rane today tried to corner state government over SNP, alleging that the nutrition provided under this scheme was "insufficient".
Parulekar said that the quota can be further increased only after union government's financial help.
The minister said that the allocation has been provided regularly to anganwadis on 15th day of every month.
Atanasio Monserrate, however, pointed out that an anganwadi in his constituency has not been receiving quota on time, for which the minister assured the probe.