Anganwadi Centres – Writ petition filed as a Public Interest Litigation questioning the closure of Anganwari centres across the country – Petitioner stated that through Anganwari Centres supplementary nutrition to pregnant women, lactating mothers, adolescent girls and children upto the age of six years were being provided and prayed for direction to Centre and States for reopening all the Anganwadi Centres in the country and to provide Anganwari services as were provided before the lockdown and in accordance with ss.4 to 7 of National Food Security Act, 2013 – Held: Government has a constitutional obligation to preserve human life – The Centre as well as States are statutorily obliged to implement statutory obligation as imposed under ss.4, 5 and 6 of the Act, 2013 – After spread of COVID-19, Anganwadi Centres were closed throughout the country in March, 2020 – The Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India had issued guidance note dated 11.11.2020 providing for resumption of Anganwari Services outside the containment zones – Therefore, in view of the guidelines, all States/Union Territories are directed to take decision in respect of opening Anganwadi Centres situated outside the containment zones – The decision for not opening Anganwadi Centres in any State/Union Territories or any part of State/Union Territory shall be taken only after the State Disaster Management Authority of the State direct for not opening of Anganwadi Centres in State/particular area of the State situated outside containment zone – Anganwadi Centres situated in the containment zone shall not be opened till the containment continues – All States/Union Territories shall ensure that nutritional standards as provided in Schedule II of National Food Security Act, 2013, is fulfilled by providing nutritional support to pregnant women, lactating mothers, nutritional support to children who suffer from malnutrition – All the States/Union Territories shall issue necessary orders regarding monitoring and supervision of Anganwadi Centres to ensure that the benefit reaches to the beneficiaries and a Complaint Redressal Mechanism be put in place in each district – Constitution of India – Art.47 – National Food Security Act, 2013 – ss.4 to 7. Allowing the writ petition, the Court
HELD: 1. It is now statutory obligation of the Centre and the States to provide for nutritional support to the pregnant women and lactating mothers,nutritional support to children and to take steps to identify and provide meals for children who suffer from malnutrition. International covenants also aim at highest attainable standards of physical and mental health. This is in interest of social justice. Inadequate supply of nutritious food to the citizens, more particularly to the children and the women shall affect their health. Therefore, the same shall be in violation of their fundamental right to health/right to live with dignity guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The Centre as well as States are statutorily obliged to implement statutory obligation as imposed under Sections 4, 5 and 6 of the Act, 2013. The nutritional support is required to be of the nutritional standards which have already been laid down to Schedule II of the Act, 2013 and all States/UTs are obliged to implement such Scheme and have to comply with Schedule II. Provision of food grains as per the provisions of the Act, 2013 is a statutory obligation on the State. Article 47 of the Constitution provides that one of the primary duties of the State is to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living of the people. [Paras 18, 19][220-E-H; 221-A-B]
2. It is the obligation of the State to ensure that pregnant women, lactating mothers and children in the age of 3 to 6 years and children who suffer from malnutrition are provided their dues. The State has to provide an appropriate mechanism for supervision and check, child development officers and other district level officers who are entrusted to monitor the functioning of Anganwadi Centres have to be extra vigilant and take steps so that no beneficiary is denied its dues. All States/Union Territories should evolve an appropriate mechanism for supervision so that dues are received by beneficiaries for whom schemes are in place. It is for the State to secure health to its citizens as its primary duty. No doubt, the Government is rendering this obligation through various schemes, such as, opening of Aanganwadis, providing nutritious food through Aanganwadis, Mid-day Meal Scheme, etc., but in order to make it meaningful, it has to be within the reach of its people, as far as possible, and the Government must supply the nutritious food in the real sense bearing in mind the provisions of National Food Security Act. The Government of India by its guidance note permitted all the States and Union Territories to open Anganwadi Centres, it is the obligation of the States/Union Territories to take decision for opening of Anganwadi Centres. Several States/Union Territories have already started running their Anganwadi Centres which is a positive step towards achievement of the goal for which Anganwadi Centres were envisaged. Unless there are any specific reasons for not opening of Anganwadi Centres, all Anganwadi Centres beyond the containment zones should be made functional by all the States/Union Territories at an early date. [Paras 33, 34][226-E-H; 227-A-B; 227-C]
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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