CAG finds 8,842 villages lack Anganwadi Centres despite population norms

Who it concerns: Women and Child Development Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh

What the auditor found

• 8,842 villages/wards (16%) lacked Anganwadi Centres despite population norms.
• Construction of 202 Anganwadi Centres was delayed, increasing costs by ₹6.18 crore.
• ₹2.32 crore in interest earned on parked construction funds was not utilized or planned for.
• Bills for Hot Cooked Meals (HCM) supplied by Self-Help Groups (SHGs) to 1-332 Anganwadi Centres were missing, preventing verification of supply.
• Significant manpower shortages existed, including 55% vacancy in District Project Officers and 40% in Child Development Project Officers.
• No refresher training was provided to any frontline workers despite high induction training coverage.
• Utilization Certificates for food grains were submitted to the Government of India without proper reconciliation with actual lifting records.

Also in the document

• CAG found that in five districts, bills for meal supplies to over 300 centers were missing, making it impossible to verify if food was actually provided.
• CAG reported that 11 out of 13 selected districts did not ensure the conduct of social audits during the audit period.
• CAG noted that 10 out of 13 District Programme Officers did not have information about funds parked with executive agencies or the interest earned on them.