The State Empowered Committee for Anganwadi services met here today with Chief Secretary, B V R Subrahmanyam in the chair.The committee deliberated upon the Annual Plan Implementation Programme (APIP) 2019-20 for the ICDS and approved an outlay of Rs. 742.93 crore to be submitted to Union Ministry of Women & Child Development for funding.Speaking at the meeting, the Chief Secretary impressed upon the officers to take the benefits of these social empowerment schemes to the weaker sections in the rural and far off places in the State. He stressed on the need for a convergent approach by all concerned Departments to make Anganwadi workers as the focal units of securing social security, healthcare and education.The Annual Plan envisages operationalisation of 141 projects in the State under Rural, Tribal and Urban sectors through the existing network of Anganwadi Centres across the State. The major components of the plan include providing Pre-school kits, medicine kits, uniforms etc to through Anganwadi centres besides the Supplementary Nutrition Programme for children, pregnant and lactating women for which Rs. 248.73 crore are proposed to be spent.The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary, Planning, Development and Monitoring, Rohit Kansal; Commissioner Secretary FCS&CA, Dr. Abdul Rashid; Secretary School Education, Ajeet Kumar Sahu; Secretary Agriculture, Manzoor Ahmad Lone, Secretary PHE, I&FC, Farooq Ahmad Shah; Secretary Rural Development Department, Sheetal Nanda and other senior officers of various departments.Earlier, Secretary, Social Welfare Department, Farooq Ahmad Lone briefed the meeting about the features of the proposed plan. He said the Department through ICDS and several such schemes is bringing a silent revolution in the rural landscape of the State in terms of nutritional assistance, healthcare and educational support to the deserving groups.