The Ministry of Women and Child Development has issued Comprehensive Guidelines for Supplementary Nutrition under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 (Mission Poshan 2.0), which provides nutritional support to all beneficiaries including children (6 months to 6 years), pregnant women, lactating mothers, and adolescent girls (14-18 years). The nutrition is delivered through three formats: Take-Home Ration (THR), Morning Snacks, and Hot Cooked Meal (HCM).
The program operates under nutrition norms contained in Schedule-II of the National Food Security Act, 2013, which were revised in January 2023. The revised norms represent a significant shift from calorie-specific requirements to comprehensive nutritional standards that emphasize diet diversity, quality protein, healthy fats, and essential micronutrients including Calcium, Zinc, Iron, Dietary Folate, Vitamin A, Vitamin-B6, and Vitamin B-12. Severely Acute Malnourished (SAM) children aged 6 months to 5 years receive additional nutrition in the form of THR.
The new guidelines focus on improving quality, diversity, and acceptability of supplementary nutrition while ensuring adherence to prescribed nutritional norms and quality standards. States and Union Territories have been given full flexibility to design menus and recipes based on local food habits, cultural preferences, and availability of indigenous ingredients, incorporating locally available cereals, millets, pulses, vegetables, nuts, and other nutrient-rich foods.
The guidelines also emphasize nutrition and health education for caregivers, promoting the benefits of THR and counseling on age-appropriate complementary feeding practices. States are advised to consult nutrition experts and technical institutes including ICMR-NIN, Agricultural Universities, and Home Science Colleges for formulating state-specific recipes. The guidelines align with the Dietary Guidelines for Indians, 2024, focusing on reducing consumption of edible oils, salt, and sugars in daily diets.
Under Mission Poshan 2.0, community mobilization and awareness advocacy represent major activities, with over 150 crore Jan Andolan activities conducted since 2018 through 16 Jan Andolans. These activities occur during Poshan Maah (September) and Poshan Pakhwada (March-April), sensitizing both target beneficiaries and broader communities. Anganwadi workers are required to conduct two Community Based Events monthly, with approximately 10.5 crore such events reported on Poshan Tracker from April 2022 to June 2026, serving as a significant strategy for changing nutritional practices through behavioral change.