Mumbai : While the Union budget mentions women’s protection, skill development and empowerment for women, it largely ignores the non-voting population of the country – the country’s children.
Bracketing women and child development under the ‘social sector’, the Budget only marginally focuses on schemes for children. In this year’s budget all schemes related to children have total allocation of Rs 65758.45 crore, a measly increase of Rs 1123.36 crore when compared to the Rs 64635.09 crore in 2015-16.
Says Komal Ganotra, Director, Research and Advocacy, CRY – Child Rights and You, “The Union Budget has not fulfilled expectations of the civil society sector with reference to child protection. The National Nutrition Mission was announced in 2014-15, however, it was not operational till March 2016. The mission is still not completely operational but money has been against allocated to it.”
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The Women and Child development department has received a total of Rs 17408 crore in the budget. The budget report states that an increased focus on the nutrition and protection of its women and children is the need of the hour. And to ensure this it has allotted Rs 16120 crores for various Intergrated Child Development Services which includes Rs. 300 crores for the National Nutrition Mission.
The government has also stated that it will set up Food and Nutrition laboratories to facilitate balanced and healthy food provided under its various schemes. The National Program for Mid Day Meal scheme has also an allocation of Rs 9700 crores, an addition of Rs 464 crores when compared to the 2015-16 budget.
The Modi Sarkar’s novel initiative ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ aimed at reducing the girl child mortality rate and increasing the education rate among girl students has received Rs 100 crore.
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The government has announced it will also be focusing on setting up shelter homes for women and equipping these homes with all facilities to teach them skills and employment opportunities. For this purpose it has set aside Rs. 100 crores. The one stop centres for women affected by violence has received Rs 75 crores. These centres provide legal, medical and psychological counselling to victims of rape, domestic violence etc.
The Nirbhaya Fund set up by the central government for all states to provide set up various schemes and facilities for women’s safety will receive an additional Rs 500 crore by the Finance Ministry.
Similarly, allocations under the Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS), marginally decreased from Rs 402 crore to Rs 397 crore. The scheme is responsible for the child protection system all over the country, including homes for children in need of care and protection, agencies working for adoption, foster care, and children in conflict with law.
