Anganwadi Workers Research Articles

IJCM_249A: Assessment of availability of drugs & logistics on Village Health Sanitation and Nutrition Day (VHSND) sessions of Raipur district, CG- A cross-sectional observational study

Background: Maternal and Child health remains one highly pervasive and damaging condition in low-middle-income countries. To improve the situation Govt. of India in 2007 initiated VHSND, as an effective platform for delivering healthcare services at the doorsteps of the unserved and underserved village population, improving awareness and access of the community for health services thereby leading to improvement in the health indicators.,(VHSND) are community-based health initiatives designed to bring essential healthcare services to the doorsteps of rural populations. These sessions serve as a crucial platform for promoting health, hygiene, and nutrition awareness within villages. Organized regularly, VHSNDs aim to address a spectrum of health issues, ranging from maternal and child health to sanitation and nutrition. The success of VHSNDs relies heavily on community participation. These sessions not only offer immediate health services but also empower communities by fostering a sense of ownership over their well-being. By engaging with local residents, VHSNDs contribute to the overall improvement of health indicators and the quality of life in rural areas. In summary, VHSNDs play a vital role in bridging the healthcare gap in rural communities, emphasizing preventive healthcare, and promoting a holistic approach to well-being. They embody the collaborative efforts of health professionals, community leaders, and residents to create healthier and more resilient villages. Objective: 1. To assess the status of logistic availability on VHSND sessions of Raipur District Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the status of logistic availability on 30 VHSND sessions of Raipur district during March- July 2023 in Chhattisgarh by observation and pre-tested pre-designed semi- structured questionnaires. Results: It was observed that out of 30 VHSND sessions site, 77 % were held as per the micro plan and from those 90% ANM, 97% ASHA, 84% Anganwadi workers, 57% Anganwadi helpers, and only 10% PRI members were present at the site of the session. Only 56% of session sites were supervised by supervisors, 28 (93.33%) session sites had drinking water facilities, 21 (70%) sites had toilet facilities, and only 25(83.33%) sites had electricity connectivity. BP Instrument, Stethoscope, Weighing scale, Hemoglobinometer, Glucometer, Disposable syringe 5ml, Disposable syringe 0.5 ml, Disposable syringe 0.1, MCP card, Examination table, were above (90%) present in most of the VHSND sessions. Out of 30 Sessions Stadiometer (19) Fetal Doppler (15), Curtains (21), Stepping stool for climbing on the examination table (17), and Referral slip (5) are present in the VHSND sessions. Nischaya kit, VDRL, HIV, and RDK for malaria kit were present in 74%,43%,97%, and 93% respectively. Iodized salt testing is not available in any sessions. All vaccines were available 100% except BCG, DPT, and Td, which were present in 87%,93%, and 90% sessions. AEFI Kit was available in 80% of sessions. Condom, OCPs, and Centchroman were present most of the site of the sessions but Inj. MPA, IUCD, and emergency contraceptive pills were available only in 14%,37%, and 14% of sessions respectively, 7.23 (77%) of the session sites have Information displayed about the day, time, and site of the VHSND session, Conclusion: Most of the session sites were held as per the micro plan, there is some lacuna in the availability of logistics although a majority of essential items were found at session sites special focus needs to be given to fetal doppler, HIV kit cold-chain maintenance, Iodized salt kit, Cotrimoxazole, Anti-malaria drugs, Td, and BCG vaccine. Satisfactory maternal and child health services were provided in many sessions.

IJCM_300A: Clinical medicine and Public health: Is the dichotomy justified? Epidemiological investigation of a Hepatitis A case admitted at a tertiary care hospital

Background: Outbreaks of Hepatitis A Virus (HAV) infection have been associated with poor sanitation, inadequate sewage disposal and contamination of food and water. Objective: To identify the epidemiological factors associated with a patient who presented with fever and vomiting and diagnosed with Hepatitis A. Methodology: 23-year-old, female patient was admitted in the general medicine department of a tertiary care hospital with complaints of fever and vomiting. IgM ELISA tests for Hepatitis A and Hepatitis E were positive. The patient’s mother had similar symptoms. Community Medicine department was informed about the patient. A team comprising of postgraduate students, MSW, ASHA worker and Anganwadi worker visited the patient’s house. Information including clinical history, source of drinking water, history of food and water intake from outside, sanitation and waste disposal methods of the house hold were collected. Stakeholders including the counsellor and members of the self-help group of the area were informed. House to house visit of all houses in 200 meters radius from patients’ house was done to look for more cases and to assess the environment sanitation. Results: The team identified that the source of drinking water of the patient’s family was a well which was not sanitary. A nearby house was identified with an open well with open sullage less than one meter away. Seven children of that household had fever and jaundice and were treated from a local hospital, one week prior. Stakeholders were also informed and both the wells were chlorinated and the families were educated about the importance of boiling water before consumption, proper disposal of sullage and waste disposal. Conclusion: Interdepartmental communication between clinical medicine and public health played an important role in identifying and eliminating the source of infection even when one patient was diagnosed and helped to prevent HAV outbreak.

Evaluating Maternal Health Services Within the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child Health and Adolescents (RMNCH+A) Framework Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic in Rural India: A Comprehensive Mixed-Methods Analysis.

Background Around half of the pregnant women in India do not receive full antenatal care. During the year 2020, routine health services were further affected by COVID-19. This study was conducted to assess the effect of the pandemic on the delivery/utilization of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child health, and adolescent(RMNCH+A) services. Methodology The study, conducted in Wardha district, Maharashtra, from July to December 2020, aimed to assess maternal health. In Wardha block, 200 pregnant and postnatal women were surveyed using a multistage sampling approach. Adequate knowledge was gauged through Mother and Child Protection Card comprehension. Health system data for April to December 2020 was compared with 2019 district-wide. In-depth interviews were conducted with beneficiaries, including pregnant and post-natal women and healthcare workers. The qualitative inquiries involved medical officers, supervisory staff, community health officers, an auxiliary nurse and midwife (ANMs), Taluka Health Officers, and focus group discussions with accredited social health activists (ASHA), Anganwadi workers (AWW), and Village Health Nutrition and Sanitation Committee members. Results Essential services were delivered to both antenatal and postpartum women, though family planning services and health education were the worst affected. Among the survey respondents, 75% of the post-partum women were not using any contraceptives. District-wide coverage of post-abortion/MTP contraception fell by around 90% as compared to the previous year. The most common difficulties faced by the respondents in availing of the services were related to finances and arranging transport to visit health facilities. Conclusion Learning from the current pandemic for system strengthening, adequate manpower, and planning to prevent disruption of essential services and promoting e-health and m-health initiatives may prevent such catastrophic events in the future from affecting the delivery of routine services.

Assessment of anganwadi workers awareness on maintenance of register and referral services provided by ICDS in Imphal East, Manipur

Assessment of anganwadi workers awareness on maintenance of register and referral services provided by ICDS in Imphal East, Manipur

Assessment of acceptability of black wheat flour products and factors affecting it among Anganwadi beneficiaries and workers: A mixed-method prospective observational study.

Malnutrition is very common in India and black wheat might be an acceptable solution to this problem. The aim of the study was to assess acceptability of black wheat flour products and factors affecting it among Anganwadi beneficiaries and workers. This was a mixed-method prospective observational study. All the family members enrolled for supplementary nutrition and Anganwadi workers/helpers of three randomly selected Anganwadi centers were taken in the study. For qualitative data, in-depth interview was done, and for quantitative data, 9-point hedonic scale was administered. Braun and Clarke's six-phase data analysis framework was used for qualitative data. A total of 16 pregnant females, 14 lactating females, 16 children, 2 Anganwadi workers, and 3 Anganwadi helpers participated in the study. Thematic analysis of the data revealed five significant themes. It included characteristics of black wheat flour, the process of making the product (experience of making the product), family acceptability, availability, and hygiene. Participants expressed that the black color appearance is one of the negative influencers in the acceptability of black wheat flour. Most of the participants liked the taste as well as the texture. However, kneading, rolling, and puffing were more challenging than traditional wheat flour. On the hedonic scale, the mean rank of acceptability is lowest for color (3.03), followed by puffing (3.49) and highest for texture (4.87) and taste (4.60). Our study results revealed that black wheat is acceptable to the Anganwadi beneficiaries and workers.

Community-based Advocacy Communication Social Mobilization (ACSM) intervention by empowering key community leaders: Evaluation using the RE-AIM framework.

Based on the theme of World Tuberculosis (TB) Day 2018-"Wanted Leaders for TB free world," various studies and country-level project have witnessed how training leaders on TB has helped enhance TB awareness in the community. This study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of Advocacy Communication and Social Mobilization (ACSM) intervention strategy through key community leaders, using Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework. This study was undertaken by the Department of Community Medicine, Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital (SMVMCH), Puducherry, in the field practice area of Primary Health Centre (PHC), Thirubuvanai. The STOP TB, ENGAGE-TB, and National TB Elimination Program (NTEP) guidelines were used for interventions. Key community leaders (KCL) list (N = 117) was obtained from Mannadipet commune panchayat and PHC. The study was conducted in four phases: phase 1 (baseline): quantitative data: proportion of presumptive TB cases from notification register; phase 2 (intervention): training program for staff nurses, auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM), Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA), and Anganwadi workers (group activity), participatory rural appraisal (PRA) activity for self-help group (SHG) leaders, and health education session for religious leaders and ex-panchayat leaders; phase 3: strengthening of ongoing activity: health education session and active case finding for TB; and phase 4: end line: outcome of the intervention, evaluated using the RE-AIM framework. As an outcome of the intervention, there was a marginal increase (21 cases) in the proportion of presumptive TB cases when comparing before (2018) and after (2019) intervention. The proportion of presumptive TB cases identified and referred by KCL was 312. A total of 77 presumptive TB cases were identified through community-based active case finding (ACF). Two sputum samples (on the spot early morning) were collected and sent for Cartridge-based nucleic acid amplification testing (CBNAAT), of which three cases were positive. This study was community led and involved leaders from diverse backgrounds, optimizing the chance of success. For sustainability, we have initiated TB support group.

Assessment of knowledge of Anganwadi workers about immunization and health services provided by ICDS in Imphal East, Manipur

Assessment of knowledge of Anganwadi workers about immunization and health services provided by ICDS in Imphal East, Manipur

Effect of Inclusive Early Childhood Development (IECD) on Growth and Development of Children in the Rural Part of the Central India: A Cohort Study.

To compare the difference between the growth and developmental status of the children who were residing in the area where Inclusive Early Childhood Development (IECD) project was being implemented and who had received interventions through trained Anganwadi workers (Frontline workers) under Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme with the children who had not received the Inclusive ECD project interventions. It was a mixed method cohort study, nested in an ongoing project in a medical college in which Inclusive ECD was used as an intervention through International Guide for Monitoring Child Development (GMCD) which is a tool for both monitoring and assessment with the help of existing government structures and personnel such as Anganwadi workers, Anganwadi supervisors and their contact points with communities. A sample of 200 children was selected; 100 each from intervention group (IECD cohort) and comparison group (Usual care cohort) and were followed till the child became 2 y of age. IECD intervention showed statistically significant effect on weight (p = 0.04) and height (p = 0.03) of the IECD cohort. Overall developmental assessment showed that the identified developmental issues (Concerns + Delays) were approximately half in IECD cohort (9.67%+5.37%=15.04%) as compared to usual care cohort (17.20%+11.82%=29.02%). The results from binomial logistic regression performed for developmental outcomes were statistically significant (p = 0.04) suggesting that children with IECD intervention have lower odds of developing developmental issues. The study indicates that it is possible to implement IECD interventions through frontline workers, which significantlyimproves the growth and development of the children.

Ab. No. 158 Lack of Rural Rehab: A Case Report of Chronic Stiffness Post Tibia Fracture

Introduction: Even after 7 decades, referral depends on acceptance of physiotherapy as an independent profession. Even if prescribed, rural rehabilitation is not always executed with regular follow up.Neither documentation of rural physiotherapist-population ratio requirements, nor regulatory body to standardize rehabilitation level is available. Only 3% Anganwadi workers were informed about physiotherapy, though Maharashtra has 214 PHCs with wellness room for physiotherapy/yoga. Regain quality of life, return to employment, which was lacking a year after proximal tibial fracture, due to lack of referral to post-operative physiotherapy in Maharashtra’s Mangaon taluka. Methods: A 41-year-old patient with right undisplaced lateral tibial condyle fracture complained of limited knee range, stiffness, pain on standing, prolonged sitting, stairclimbing, reduced walking speed, loss of job as a coal miner. He was explained that restricted flexion was due to internal bony fragments, which caused fear of end range flexion, and was advised to undergo a revision surgery inspite of poor expected outcome. 4-week protocol included strengthening for quadriceps, hamstrings, hip abductors, flexors, calf, stretching, weight bearing exercises. Home exercises were regularly progressed. Adjuncts used were dry cupping, IASTM, dry needling. Result: Range increased from 10°-86° to 0°-112°, extensor lag, antalgic gait was corrected, thigh girth increased by 1.5 cm. Pain reduced while climbing stairs (4/10 to 0/10), standing after prolonged sitting (6/10 to 4/10), and walking (1/10 to 0/10). Squatting, cross leg sitting with minimal pain, return to work as a full-time coal miner was achieved. Revision surgery and disability were prevented. Conclusion: Rural early rehabilitative protocol could have prevented 1 year of unemployment, pain, stiffness. Implications: Highlights need for streamlined referral system to match evidence that recommends early ROM and weight bearing. Stimulate public –private partnerships for creating the role of physiotherapy assistant/technician at the existent PHCs. Facilitate followed-up tele-rehabilitation for rural physiotherapy.

Role of anganwadi workers' knowledge in the developmental milestones of children at anganwadi centers

Role of anganwadi workers' knowledge in the developmental milestones of children at anganwadi centers

Determinants of Severe Acute Malnutrition in under-five children in Dibrugarh District, Assam

Background: Malnutrition is a major public health problem and leading determinant of morbidity and mortality in under-five children in India. Aim & Objective: To assess determinants of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) in under-five children of Dibrugarh district, to assess knowledge and practice of Infant, Young Child Feeding Practices (IYCF) and to assess the knowledge and practice of identification of SAM of Anganwadi workers. Settings and Design: Dibrugarh district, Assam. Mixed method study. Methods and Material: It was a case-control study that interviewed mothers of children between 6-59 months between June 2021 to May 2022. Using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire Interviews of a total of 164 under-five children’s mothers (82 cases and 82 controls)] were done. Qualitative data was also collected by in-depth interviews of Anganwadi workers (AWWs). Statistical analysis used: SPSS version 25.0. Chi-Square test, unadjusted OR for Bivariate analysis and adjusted odds ratio using Multiple logistic regression was calculated. Results: Determinants of severe acute malnutrition were joint family (AOR 3.08, 95% CI 1.02-9.31, p= 0.046); birth weight less than 2.5 kg (AOR 20.6, 95% CI 4.50-94.03, p=<0.0001); mothers with less than 4 antenatal check-ups (AOR 5.13, 95% CI 1.28-29.47, p=0.021); partial immunization (AOR 9.2, 95%CI 1.83-46.59, p=0.007); and irregular utilization of ICDS services (AOR 27.36, 95%CI 5.73-130.66, p=<0.0001). Problems faced by AWWs during service delivery were communication barriers, community resistance during home visits, and increased workload during COVID-19. Conclusions: IYCF practices need to be promoted with screening and growth monitoring for early detection and timely referral of malnutrition along referred back and linkages of services so that home-based and community-based management can be done to prevent severe acute malnutrition.

Effect of Information and Education Campaign (IEC) Activity on Knowledge of First-aid in Rabies Prevention: A Quasi-experimental Study among Anganwadi Workers in an Urban Slum of Bhubaneswar, Odisha

Effect of Information and Education Campaign (IEC) Activity on Knowledge of First-aid in Rabies Prevention: A Quasi-experimental Study among Anganwadi Workers in an Urban Slum of Bhubaneswar, Odisha

Nutritional status of under-5 children during COVID-19: Insights from Anganwadi workers of Kerala, India

Investing in nutrition is key to securing a country's future, as poor nutrition during childhood instigates developmental impairment. In India, the Anganwadi service disruption flared child malnutrition during COVID-19. This study explores how under-5 nutritional status was managed in COVID-19 by Anganwadi workers (AWWs) of the ICDS, Kerala. An in-depth interview was conducted among 30 AWWs. The integrative, cost-effective Anganwadi strategy for maintaining child nutritional status in a developing country during a pandemic is an impressive model. However, the lack of direct interactions of AWWs with beneficiaries leads to lowered intake and improper food timing in children as perceived by AWWs.

Formative research on parenting practices and community support for early childhood development among caregivers in Telangana

Background: Early Childhood Development refers to the overall development of children from conception until 5 years of age across various domains such as physical, emotional, social and cognitive development. Empowering caregivers by providing information regarding ECD and early stimulation, play and communication activities from birth will help ensure all-round child development and reduce risk of developmental delays. Methods: A cross-sectional mixed methods study was conducted in May-July 2022 in two districts of Telangana, India. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to assess KAP among 218 primary caregivers of children aged 0 to 5 years. Two focused group discussions among secondary caregivers and 18 In-Depth Interviews among frontline workers (AWWs and ASHAs) were conducted to study about current ECD practices, sources of information and communication channels. Results: More than 80% parents had good knowledge regarding brain development, but 15 to 25% did not know that activities like talking or playing with their child could improve intelligence. Less than 50% parents associated routine activities like telling stories, being sensitive to the child, playing and protecting the child with their child’s cognitive or emotional development. Even though fathers engaged their children in play and learning activities, most felt the mother was the primary caregiver. Most participants received information regarding Health and Nutrition from Anganwadi workers, but topics like sanitation, child rearing and early stimulation were not regularly covered. Conclusions: Empowering caregivers on early learning and stimulation activities by frontline workers is crucial for ensuring overall growth and development of children into productive adults.

A Study of the Role Performance of the Anganwadi Supervisors

The success of any developmental programme depends on the performance of its functionaries. It is also so in case of Integrated Child Development Scheme, which is operated by Anganwadi Centers through where the Anganwadi worker is the actual doer of the programme at the grassroot level and the supervisor who guide them in all their activities plays a key role in attaining the objectives of the programme. Supervisor acts as a link between administrators and field level functionaries in transmitting the directions to the ground level and feed back to the higher-ups. The knowledge of the performance of the supervisors will go a long way in formulating the training curriculum of the Anganwadi workers and also the supervisors, to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the progranmme and to replicate and rectification respectively. The present study is aimed to identify the profile of the serving supervisors, assess their performance in selected areas and to study the relationship between the personal characteristics and their performance.

A review paper on anganwadi workers knowledge on maternal nutrition

The present study reviews the Maternal Nutrition knowledge of health care providers (ANMs and ASHAs) of Primary Health Centers (PHCs) and Community Health Centers (CHCs) and attempts to find out the existing gaps in their knowledge level related to maternal nutrition as well as discusses strategies to bridge those gaps. Good nutrition is the core pillar for human development and its necessity varies with respect to age, gender and during physiological changes such as pregnancy which is a critical phase in a woman's life when the expectant mother needs optimal nutrients to support the developing fetus. Awareness about appropriate nutrition during pregnancy is a serious concern and lack of it may lead to child morbidity and mortality. Therefore it is imperative to address this issue properly in various government policies and schemes. ICDS scheme initiated by Government of India is a major step in this regard which provides nutrition and health education, supplementary nutrition, family planning tips etc. to the pregnant women. The Anganwadi workers are the basic functionaries of the ICDS scheme and their services (providing counseling, supplementary nutrition, distribution of Iron & Folic acid tablets) are transmitted to the beneficiaries through a channel of Anganwadi centers (AWCs). Keeping the above background in mind relevant literature such as journals, newspapers, articles, research papers from Scopus, Pub Med, research gate, and Google scholar related to national and state policies pertinent to maternal nutrition were reviewed to find out the existing gaps in the knowledge level of health care providers. It is concluded from the study that maternal nutritional needs have to be prioritized in government health programmes and strategies to improve the status of expectant mothers need to be implemented to address nutritional challenges. Government schemes can be strengthened by promoting integration of services, ensuring effective procurement mechanisms for supplementary nutrition and food supplements, establishing regional training facilities and strengthening program monitoring and evaluation.

A Study on Convergent Action at the Grassroots during COVID-19 Pandemic

The ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic brought certain circumstances which were never witnessed at such a scale. The response to this Pandemic was with strategically choreographed convergent action across different levels of both the government sector and non-government sector. This paper examines and documents the experiences of field functionaries like Anganwadi Workers, ASHA workers and Field Functionaries of State Rural Livelihood Mission during this Pandemic. This paper is based on Qualitative Research conducted with the tool of Narrative Analysis where the experiences of respondents from Fatehabad District, Birbhum, and Uttar Dinajpur Districts in West Bengal were documented. The sampling process done to select specific respondents was done purposively (purposive sampling). Anganwadi Workers and ASHA Workers under usual circumstances do practice convergent action among themselves but during the process of institutional quarantine in rural settings, the inter-departmental convergence was evident because field functionaries of various in-line departments have proven to be a significant success. Moreover, the service-delivery component under different schemes has been modified relatively. SHG Groups which has been primarily viewed concerning micro-finance or credit has played a role in multiple domains with service delivery, market production. Convergence has been a contemporary highlighted concern in social work and development practice.

A study to compare the performance of anganwadi workers in owned and rented anganwadi centers in a district of the western part of India

ABSTRACT Introduction: The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme is one of the flagship programs, and under this, various activities like non-formal education on one hand and breaking the vicious cycle of malnutrition, morbidity, and mortality on the other hand are carried out by anganwadi worker (AWW). The aim of this study is to assess the AWWs performance and beneficiary participation in respect to the ICDS scheme. Methodology: This is a community-based, cross-sectional study done in two stages using a simple random sampling technique. Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) area is divided into 10 parts called ghatak, and out of these 10 ghataks, 6 were chosen in the first stage, and in the second stage, 12 anganwadi centers were selected from these 6 selected ghataks using simple random sampling. Result: In this study, 58.3% of anganwadi workers were graduates. While talking about work related to “Home Visit” and “Immunization Sessions,” there was no statistically significant difference between owned and rented anganwadi center noted. While in “Nutrition & health education”-related work, there was a statistically significant difference between owned and rented anganwadi centers observed. Accuracy of weighing, plotting, and interpretation skill was more than 90% found in both the rented and owned anganwadi center. An almost similar level of nutritional status was observed in both owned and rented centers. Conclusion: In terms of performance and participation, there was not much difference between corporation own and rented anganwadi centers, although there were shared concerns related to frequent changes of place of rented anganwadi centers affecting the participation of beneficiaries.

Response and adaptations made by the integrated child development services stakeholders towards the digitalisation of its record keeping systems of the Anganwadi centres in urban Gujarat, India

Initiated on 12th February 2018, Anganwadi centres (AWC) of Gujarat adapted the integrated child development services common application software (ICDS-CAS), for real time monitoring and record keeping, for Anganwadi workers (AWWs), Anganwadi supervisors (AWS) and the child development project officers (CDPO).This application was abruptly discontinued in September 2020 and replaced by ‘Poshan tracker’ ,a mobile based application, launched by the ministry of women and child development, government of India on 1st March 2021. Documentation of challenges and benefits due to shift to software-based record keeping system by frontline workers of ICDS in urban Gujarat. Informal meetings were held with stakeholders like the CDPO, AWS and AWWs to discuss the challenges faced due to digitalisation of record maintenance. We planned to conduct two focused group discussions (FGD) for the same purpose. FGDs were conducted at two different Anganwadi, within city corporation area. Audio recordings of both FGDs were repeatedly played and analysed to prepare qualitative report. ‘ICDS-CAS’ didn’t store older records so the AWWs had to refer to their older registers. The software was English based but AWWs preferred Gujarati(local) language. ‘Poshan tracker had no ‘auto-update’ and ‘delete’ option, to rectify inaccurate entries. One could easily view all the information in one glance. Software database had compiled data from anganwadi, removing the need for supervisors to separately contact each AWWs for an anganwadi data. It was concluded that elder AWWs preferred old register entry system, while the younger AWWs preferred the software data entry system.

Improving Perception Towards Gender Equality Through Cash Transfer Scheme: A Case of Haryana

This article examines the role of conditional cash transfer—Apki Beti Hamari Beti (ABHB)—in addressing the issue of declining sex ratio through its impact on gender preferences and perception about gender equality in the state of Haryana. The study is conducted in two districts of Haryana—Jhajjar (lowest child sex ratio in the state) and Nuh (highest sex ratio in the state). Three hundred women respondents were interviewed to understand the extent of awareness and access to the scheme in both regions. The results of the study revealed that the ABHB scheme has influenced changing people’s attitudes considerably towards the girl child. But, the level of awareness of the scheme is relatively less in Jhajjar due to which not many households are able to access the scheme. The Anganwadi workers (AWWs) have played an instrumental role in improving people awareness and accessibility of ABHB scheme. It is important to increase the participation of AWWs by the provision of incentives to them for increasing awareness and utilisation of ABHB scheme by eligible beneficiaries.