Mo Upakari Bagicha – Department of Women & Child Development , Govt. of Odisha

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Mo Upakari Bagicha

Problem

• Poor dietary diversity leads to a lack of essential nutrients & micronutrients in children.
• The problem of availability & affordability of fresh vegetables round the year.
• The problem of pesticides & chemical loaded vegetables & fruits.
• Enhancing the knowledge & awareness of organic farming.
• Taking corrective actions for any issues being reported.

Solution

• The gardens provide a sustainable source of fresh and nutritious vegetables, fruits, and herbs. These fresh produce ensure that beneficiaries receive adequate nutrients.
• By growing various vegetables and herbs, the kitchen gardens promote dietary diversity. 
• Mo Upakari Bagicha encourages sustainable agricultural practices. 
• Mo Upakari Bagicha creates a sense of community ownership and participation. 
• It encourages parents, teachers, and community members to engage in the upkeep and maintenance of the gardens actively.

Challenges

• Lack of space & water facilities across all AWCs.
• Uniformity in willingness, knowledge & skills of AWWs.
• Availability of good quality seeds & saplings.
• Doing regular follow-ups, monitoring and review.
• Children didn’t like having vegetables initially.

Innovation

• Convergence has been done with Horticulture Department for provisioning of the same to AWWs.
• In AWCs with a lack of space, the contribution of land from the community is also being sought.
• The Krishi Mitras from Odisha Livelihoods Mission were roped in for handholding support to the AWWs.
• Convergence the departments of agriculture & horticulture for the availability of quality seeds & saplings around the year.
• Community support is being garnered to provide land for setting up such gardens.

Outcomes

• Ensures dietary diversity and adds to food palatability.
• Promotes sustainable organic farming.
• Fostering knowledge & awareness of communities on sustainable agriculture.
• Contributing to better health outcomes, reduced risk of malnutrition, and improved overall growth and development.
• Created a sense of community ownership and participation.

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Case Study

Mo Upakari Bagicha

Introduction 

Mo Upakari Bagicha, which stands for nutri gardens, is an initiative implemented in Anganwadi Centers (AWCs) in Odisha. It aims to create small kitchen gardens or vegetable gardens within the premises of AWCs. These gardens serve multiple purposes and carry significant importance. Mo Upakari Bagicha helps in addressing the issue of malnutrition among children and pregnant or lactating women. The gardens provide a sustainable source of fresh and nutritious vegetables, fruits, and herbs.

Problems

Poor dietary diversity leads to a lack of essential nutrients & micronutrients in children. The problem of availability & affordability of fresh vegetables round the year and problem of pesticides & chemical loaded vegetables & fruits. Enhancing the knowledge & awareness of organic farming.

Solutions

 The gardens provide a sustainable source of fresh and nutritious vegetables, fruits, and herbs. These fresh produce ensure that beneficiaries receive adequate nutrients. By growing a variety of vegetables and herbs, the kitchen gardens promote dietary diversity. Mo Upakari Bagicha encourages sustainable agricultural practices. Mo Upakari Bagicha creates a sense of community ownership and participation. It encourages parents, teachers, and community members to engage in the upkeep and maintenance of the gardens actively.

Outcomes

Mo Upakari Bagicha helps in addressing the issue of malnutrition among children and pregnant or lactating women. The gardens provide a sustainable source of fresh and nutritious vegetables, fruits, and herbs. These fresh produce items are used to prepare balanced meals, ensuring that beneficiaries receive adequate nutrients. By growing a variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs, the kitchen gardens promote dietary diversity. This is crucial because a diverse diet is associated with better health outcomes, reduced risk of malnutrition, and improved overall growth and development. Mo Upakari Bagicha offers an excellent opportunity for educating children and their families about the importance of a healthy diet and the benefits of consuming fresh, home-grown produce. It helps create awareness about sustainable agriculture practices, organic farming, and the advantages of consuming pesticide-free foods. 

Challenges

There was a lack of space & water facilities across all AWCs. Mo Upakari Bagicha faces a lack of uniformity in the willingness, knowledge & skills of AWWs and the availability of good quality seeds & saplings. 

Innovation

The most important innovation has been the convergence of the departments of agriculture & horticulture for the availability of quality seeds & saplings around the year. Otherwise, this was posing to be an issue. Secondly, in order to raise the skills & knowledge of the AWWs, Krishi Mitras from Odisha Livelihoods Mission were roped in for handholding support & supervision. Thirdly, in the case of AWCs having less space, community support is also being garnered to provide land for setting up such gardens. Regular follow-ups, monitoring & reviews are done on the status & progress of the gardens. 

Opportunities

With efforts towards rainwater harvesting at AWCs, more AWCs can be brought under the fold.  Plans are to scale up to all AWCs with their own building & sufficient space. There is a high potential for replicability of this intervention. These days there are many models which show that even houses without adequate space can also have nutritional plants n their premises.

Summary

Mo Upakari Bagicha is an initiative implemented in Anganwadi Centers (AWCs). It aims to create small kitchen gardens or vegetable gardens within the premises of AWCs. These gardens serve multiple purposes and carry significant importance.

For more information, please contact:
Ms Subhasmita Mohanty, Asst. Section Officer at poshan.odisha@gmail.com

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