HYDERABAD: An acute shortage of eggs and milk in the State is weighing down the nutrition mission of the Women Development and Child Welfare Department (WDCWD).
With the fluctuation in the prices of eggs and transportation costs, the delivery network has met with hiccups, resulting in a 34 per cent shortfall in the total eggs supplied in the month of November to the 35,500 odd anganwadis across the State. In terms of the milk supplied, the shortfall was by 22 per cent.
The data comes as a shocker though it was only recently that videos from Uttar Pradesh showed how milk mixed with water was fed to children owing to its shortage. Telangana also has very high anaemia levels, making iron intake crucial to curb malnutrition.
This is not a concern that pertains to the month of November alone. Data from the Food Commodity Tracking System suggests that throughout the year, in some district or the other, there has been a shortage of these essential commodities. In October, the statewide shortfall on egg supply was 18 per cent.
Case in point: Hyderabad, the State capital. Here, nearly 94 per cent of the first batch of eggs sought in the beginning of November was supplied to the anganwadis. In the middle of the month, however, only 54.6 per cent of the quantity sought was supplied. Further, by the end of the month, this fell to 19.11 per cent. Supply of milk also plummeted to 64 per cent in Hyderabad and other districts due to poor supply.
The eggs are supplied in three batches to prevent them from going bad. Every child, aged 6 months to 6 years, is roughly given 18 eggs as a take-home ration. However, with the shortage, many anganwadis are not getting the adequate supply. Rangareddy and Medchal also saw poor supply of eggs with the former witnessing a 54 per cent deficit and the latter a 30 per cent deficit.
The crisis keeps resurfacing in one district or the other, suggests data. For instance, in April, when Hyderabad had nearly 95 per cent supply, districts like Mahabubabad and Warangal (Rural) had poor supply. Officials are trying to plug these hiccups with regular monitoring. "The eggs come in from dealers registered with National Egg Coordination Committee. Due to issues in prices of eggs or in transport costs, gaps are formed," said an official from the WDCWD.