LUCKNOW, Nov. 7 -- To tackle undernutrition among women and children across Devipatan division, around 250 undernourished mothers and children received a gift of health and nutrition in Gonda, Bahraich, Balrampur and Shravasti districts ahead of Diwali on Friday. With a distribution drive held at the Zila Panchayat Sabhagar, Gonda became the first district to roll out Parampara se Poshan, a new initiative in the division. Similar drives will follow in the other three districts. Across the division, 10,842 children have been identified with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) or Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM), and the initiative aims to reach each of them. The initiative aims to strengthen maternal and child nutrition and ensure a healthy start for every child in the state. At the heart of the drive is a return to the region's own food traditions. Mothers were gifted traditional iron kadhais, which have long had a place in Indian kitchens and help increase the iron in everyday meals, supporting efforts against anaemia. Families also received jaggery, roasted chana and sattu, affordable and nutritious foods grown and eaten across the region for generations, along with Calcium and ORS-Zinc packets. Fortified Take Home Ration, in the form of ready-to-cook nutritional premixes, was provided alongside to meet the nutritional needs of mothers and children. Conceived by divisional commissioner Durga Shakti Nagpal, Parampara se Poshan goes beyond a single day of distribution. Anganwadi workers will track the progress of every mother and child, ASHA workers will make regular home visits, and weight, growth and haemoglobin levels will be monitored at regular intervals, so that the effort is judged by the health of the families it reaches. "A healthy future for Devipatan begins with its mothers and children," said Nagpal. "Parampara se Poshan brings together the wisdom of our traditions and the reach of our government systems. Handing over these kits on Diwali is the first step."...