Diversion of funds, lack of buildings, toilets, medicine kit, weighing machines and staff shortage at all levels are plaguing the Government’s flagship Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), says a CAG report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.
The report found that Rs 57.82 crore had been diverted to activities not permitted under the scheme in five of the 13 States during 2009-11. Also, Rs 70.11 crore meant for the scheme was blocked in civil deposits, personal ledger accounts etc.
In Haryana, Rs 38.6 crore received for supplementary nutrition was diverted during 2006-11 to Ladli scheme, payment of honorarium to Anganwadi workers and for purchase of furniture for new centres.
In Uttar Pradesh, during 2008-09, Rs 1 crore received for Information, Education and Communication activities was diverted to a State-sponsored scheme — ‘Mahamaya Garib Balika Ashirwad Yojana’.
Diversion of funds was also found in Odisha, Karnataka and Rajasthan.
The CAG report, which test-checked 2,730 Anganwadi centres (AWCs) in 13 States, also found that 53 per cent of these did not get flexi-funds of Rs 1,000 each from State Governments.
The audit report pulled up the Women and Child Development Ministry for poor monitoring of the scheme. It noted that the Ministry did not even have data on the eligible beneficiaries of pre-school education making it impossible to ascertain the extent of its coverage.
“Financial monitoring under the scheme was also very weak,” it added.
The scheme, which aims to provide food and nutrition to children through Anganwadis, was launched in 1975, to ensure healthy development for all children between 0-6 years.
About 35 years later, India had an infant mortality rate of 48 per 1,000 live births and child mortality rate at 63 per 1,000 against a target of 30 and 31 in 2010, respectively.