The Musahars, entrenched in various forms of isolation by the upper castes and mass social discrimination in society, the COVID pandemic has pushed this vulnerable section further to the margins with the ramification measures for prevention of COVID -19.  Caritas is also closely working for the development and empowerment of children from Musahar communities (Mahadalits) in Bihar through their intervention in education and Nutrition. In convergence with Prime Minister’s Poshan Abhiyaan and the observance of Poshan Maah 2020, Caritas India through her partners reached out to the community to generate awareness this Poshan Maah.  The third Rashtriya Poshan Maah is being celebrated in September 2020 to address the problem of malnutrition in women and children. An initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the target of POSHAN Abhiyaan is to bring down stunting in children of 0-6 years of age from 38.4 per cent to 25 per cent by 2022. Hence, a series of activities and sessions such as Poshan par Charcha, Poshan Mela, Pledge to Kusposhan, capacity Building sessions on safe motherhood and newborn care etc were conducted at both virtual and at the grassroots platforms to observe this month.

“Poshan Par Charcha” at Madhubani, Araria and Purnea

At Madhubani, program team initiated the Nutrition based discussion called “Poshan Par Charcha” in the presence of ANM, ASHA AWW, PRI Leaders, Ward Members and CBO leaders. It was conducted in all 10 villages and appreciated by all the stakeholders and community members as it gave them the opportunity to discuss the importance of Nutrition and related services at the ICDS centre. Major discussion point was Exclusive Breastfeeding, Complementary Feeding, Anemia, Health and Sanitation.

“Poshan Maah has given us the chance to come together and have this much-needed discussion on Malnutrition prevailing during the pandemic. We learnt about a lot of good practices of taking care of our infant children amidst this pandemic” says Shubhansh Yadav, Bhour Panchayat, Madhubani.

“It was empowering to be a facilitator and teach other community members on the occasion of POSHAN MAAH. I want to learn more so that I create awareness among my community and eradicate malnutrition”, shared Manisha Kumari, Kishori Samiti Member of Araria.

Kishori Samiti and Roshni ki Toli marked #Poshan safe at Madhepura

 At Madhepura, child leaders from Roshni ki Toli and Kishori Samiti observed Poshan Maah by preparing  IEC materials and posters on food diversity, complementary feeding- frequency and dose, Hygiene practices and Balanced Diet. They generated awareness in the community by distributing these posters at Anganwadi Centres, centre points of hamlets and CEICs. ASHA, Sevika and ward members actively participated and helped children preparing and placing the IECs and Posters and conducted sessions on the importance of Nutrition and Maternal and Childcare to the mothers with the help of handmade creative posters.

“For us, Poshan Maah feels like a festival, every day we are doing something different, something creative to create awareness among the community members. And I can say it confidently that these little efforts by our children is creating an impact, people are stopping by to listen to them” says Manjo Devi, Ward member of Ward no. 2, Amoja Village, Madhepura.

Mata Samiti Members take a pledge to fight Kuposhan (Malnutrition) in their hamlets at Rohtas  

In Rohtas, the creative minds of Roshni ki Toli Members painted the entire hamlet with their art. They shared messages on Hygiene, sanitation, immunization with the help of art such as colourful rangoli, chart papers and creative slogans promoting Poshan Maah. Community Health & Nutrition Volunteers along with the Asha, SNM (Anganwadi workers) and Panchayat Leaders conducted door to door awareness sessions on COVID 19 guidelines and other essential health and nutrition practices during COVID. Mata Samiti Members took pledge to eradicate  Kuposhan (malnutrition) in their hamlets.

At Saharsa, Poshan Mela was observed

At Saharsa, each village organised Poshan Mela for seven days.  It was a small gathering where CNHVs (Community health and nutrition volunteers) took care of the Govt guidelines and organised an exhibition at the CEIC centres. The AWW, ASHA workers, ANM, Official from Agricultural Dept, Vikas Mitras, PRI Leaders participated in this Fair and conducted various sessions for the CBO members. The Mela was decorated with colourful posters and IECs prepared by children and adolescent group members. The community was given awareness on low-cost Food diversity and Balanced diet with the help of demonstration on different food items. At every village, the entry to Poshan Mela was marked safe with an arrangement of soap, water and sanitizers for the visitors and also generate awareness on COVID related hygiene and health practices.

“We have learnt so much here in this Poshan Mela. The Food Demo was the best method to teach. We learn more when we see. This Poshan Maah is a kind of celebration for all of us and especially for the children as they are happily engaged in these activities. The children are learning and building awareness among us.” Says, Bijali Devi, Bariyahi Mata Samiti member, Saharsa.

“Let’s be #Local4Poshan! Our nation is home to dozens of healthy dishes, which have high nutrition value”, echoed our honourable Prime Minister this Poshan Maah. Indeed, with this vision, we organised awareness sessions empowering the Musahars to walk towards the path of Sustainable Goal targets of SDG 3 and SDG 4 and tackle malnutrition.