Factors Influencing Nutritional Status of Children Attending Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Programme:A Study on Kamrup District of Assam

Children are the most valuable asset of a nation; their good nutrition is the cornerstone for survival, health and development for current and succeeding generations which guarantee the sound and sustained economic development. The nutritional status of children impacts their health, cognition and educational achievements. But underweight and malnutrition are most prominent in India (According to NFHS-3 & NFHS-4).Therefore, government of India has initiated several schemes to develop the health status of people including the children on priority. Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) programme, which was launched in 1975 with target to prevent the incidence of severe malnutrition of children under the age of 6 years in the country. This scheme also includes pregnant women, nursing mothers and adolescent girls in close combination with the health services for the improvement of health status and overall development of children and other beneficiaries. As a standardpractice, it is expected that the proposed objectives of ICDS should beachieved; it is only the monitoring and evaluation which reflects the clearpicture of the reality/ situation at the ground level. The present study has made an attempt to examine the factor influencing nutritional status of children attending ICDS programme. This study may be able to provide a base line data in effective implementation of the ICDS programme and improvement of nutritional status of children in future.