"Since 2 months, my child is not going to the Anganwadi as we get nothing there", says Sakar Dei, a resident of Thuanmal Rampur block, in Odisha's Kalahandi. For a month now, the Anganwadi in Kerpai village, where her son is registered with, has run out of rice. This is the case with many Anganwadis in and around the block. Either the Anganwadi has run out of supplies or women are simply unaware of their entitlements.

ICDS or Integrated Child Development Services of the Indian government is in existence since 1975. One of its mandates among others is to combat malnutrition and reduce maternal and child mortality in India.

Watch the video to know how far is the program from achieving the goal it set out to in areas so hard to access like this block in Kalahandi.

This is a 5 part series of ground reports from 2 districts in Odisha focusing on the criticality, issues of access & gaps under India’s central and state programs to tackle malnutrition in the country.