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Take Home Ration

Government of Uttar Pradesh (GoUP) has been taking various proactive policy measures to address malnutrition and unleash the power of women’s collectives for rural development. As a part of the same a long-term agreement was signed between Uttar Pradesh State Rural Livelihoods Mission (UPSRLM) and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), GoUP for decentralized production and supply of Take-Home Ration (THR) to Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) by engaging cluster level federations of SHGs.

PCI, a technical partner to UPSRLM for Health and Nutrition through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) supported Prerna Technical Support Programme (PTSP), has provided technical assistance to UPSRLM in conceptualising the decentralised production and distribution of THR through SHG-operated Food Enterprise.

Additionally, PCI in collaboration with UN World Food Program (UN WFP) has assisted in the establishment of two production units, one in each of Unnao and Fatehpur, as a proof of concept. The state has a target to setup 204 THR units spread across 43 districts, 403 Blocks and ~99,000 Anganwadi centers (AWC). It is anticipated to have a yearly revenue of around $250 million, employ more than 3000 SHG women for 240 days per year, and directly assist 14 million rural poor households.

PCI is keen on ensuring viability and efficiency of these enterprises by developing three Food Processing Enterprises as Centers of Excellence (CoE), which will serve as learning and immersion sites for other units. PCI is also strengthening and streamlining the systems and processes of UPSRLM, by developing and integrating Knowledge Management System and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems to efficiently manage the initiative.

The decentralised local production and distribution of Take-Home Rations (THR) through food processing SHG micro-enterprises led by women Self-Help Groups (SHGs) is anticipated to ensure stronger accountability, reduce leakage, create local employment, and widen the vista of women’s economic empowerment. Further, PCI partnered with Decentralized Renewable Energy organizations and is demonstrating the solarization of 3 THR enterprises in the state with the objective of ensuring optimum production of THR enterprises which are solarized. Learnings from the same would be used for scaling up the solarization of remaining 200+ THR enterprises in the state thus ensuring clean energy apart from nutritional security and women’s economic empowerment.

Additionally, the initiative would address 6 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) namely Goal 1- No Poverty, Goal 2- Zero Hunger, Goal 5- Gender Equality, Goal 7- Affordable and Clean Energy, Goal 8- Decent Work and economic growth and Goal 10 Reduced Inequalities.