The East Delhi Municipal Corporation has launched ‘Suposhan’ , a programme to detect and correct iron deficiency, ‘anaemia’, among children studying in schools under its jurisdiction. The programme was launched at M.C. Primary School, Subhash Park, which is run by the Corporation. “Malnutrition is multi-factorial in origin and requires strategies to break the intergenerational effects. The private sector has a role to play in combating under-nutrition. It can make its core business more nutrition friendly and it can complement the role of the State in key areas such as fortification,” said former Member of Parliament Om Prakash Kohli while launching the scheme. According to the Harsh Malhotra, chairman of the Education Committee of the Corporation, under the scheme around 50,000 children of the corporation schools would be assessed for their height, weight and haemoglobin level. The six-month-long programme targets 45 sites, covering 90 schools (morning and evening shifts). “After de-worming, the children diagnosed with anaemia would be provided with iron-fortified biscuits that will continue being distributed until the programme is completed. The scheme is pre-meditated to identify anaemic children. EDMC school children being more susceptible to it, given their socio-economic condition, made us orient the entire programme around them,” added Mr. Malhotra. Dr. C. S. Pandav, Head of Department, Community Medicine, All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), which has extended technical support to ‘Suposhan’ , said: “Although anaemia could hamper health and productivity at any age, its effects are most devastating for children as it could not only restrict their physical and cognitive development at the foetal stage but after birth as well. This calls for immediate intervention from private and government stake holders equally.” The scheme, which has been designed by EDMC in collaboration with Heal Foundation and Britania Nutrition Foundation, also intends to spread awareness among the parents about the symptoms and health hazards of anaemia and measures to counter it. For the purpose of facilitating efficacy in the awareness drive, multiple communication tools like information leaflets, pamphlets, posters and hoardings will be used.