It’s Raining Schemes Ahead Of Polls In Odisha; ‘Aama Kunipila’ Programme Launched On Children’s Day

Bhubaneswar: After ‘Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha’ scheme and Location Accessible Multimodal Initiative (LAccMI), Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday announced ‘Aama Kunipila’ programme on the occasion of Children’s Day.

“It is a campaign to institutionalise home-based care and stimulation of children less than three years of age through concrete intervention on home-based parent-led early stimulation programme for their brain development through men-streaming caregivers capacity building, low-cost toy-making by parents,” a release issued by Women and Child Development Department, which officially launched the scheme, said.

It further said that the major components of this programme are sensitising the parents and caregivers on the importance of early years, involvement of father and male caregivers through men-streaming, engaging young children with low-cost contextual and child-friendly toys by the parents and caregivers, facilitating love, talk, touch and play through toys, stories, and interactive talk and activity by the Anganwadi workers and campaign grounding and effective implementation facilitate through appropriate parent and caregiver-friendly social behaviour communication programme (SBCC).

“The ‘Ama Kunipila’ activity is envisaged to promote parent-led home-based joyful child-friendly learning by creating an early stimulating environment. Various IEC materials including Mo Bikash Patra, Kuni CalendarAama Kunipila Flip Book, Sukhada Lalana Palana handbook, and Aama Kunipila toy kit have been developed to support and strengthen the programme,” it added.

This is among the strings of schemes recently announced by the government.

In October, Naveen Patnaik launched the ‘Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha’ scheme with an outlay of Rs 3,397 crore to boost rural infrastructure and promote Jagannath culture. LAccMI got the Cabinet approval in September to establish a seamless public transport network across the state from GP level to the state capital. The government announced to reimburse the entire fee of students belonging to SC/ST communities, with a maximum annual family income of Rs 1 lakh, studying medical and engineering courses in state-run institutions under Mukhyamantri Medhabi Chatra Protshan Yojana, the same month.

In August, the Cabinet approved Nutana Unnata Abhilasha Odisha scheme with an outlay of Rs. 385 crore to skill one lakh youths every year in the state during next three years.

In February, the government proposed Mukhya Mantri Medhabi Chhatrabruti Yojana for meritorious students – under which 10,000 UG students will get a scholarship amount of Rs 10,000 per annum while 15,000 per year will be given to 5,000 PG students and 10,000 students pursuing technical and professional courses will be extended scholarship of Rs 20,000 every year.

Political analysts are of the opinion that the ruling BJD is hoping to beat the anti-incumbency through such populist schemes, catering to all age groups, ahead of the simultaneous General and Assembly elections in April-May 2024.