The revised allocation will cover children aged three to six years enrolled at 53,065 Anganwadis across Gujarat. | Photo Credit: Siva SaravananS

Aimed at improving nutritional value and variety of meals served to 16.17 lakh children enrolled in Anganwadis across Gujarat, the state government on Wednesday said it has raised the daily allocation for procuring ingredients for hot cooked meals by 67 per cent to ₹8.50 per child from the earlier ₹5.10.

The decision includes the addition of whole green gram to the weekly menu, alongside provisions for pulses, chickpeas, seasonal green vegetables and fruits. The state government will bear the entire additional cost of ₹3.40 per child per day, amounting to approximately ₹80 crore annually. The revised allocation will cover children aged three to six years enrolled at 53,065 Anganwadis across Gujarat. The existing ₹5.10 per child per day will continue to be shared equally by the Centre and the state under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme, an official statement from the state government said here.

Under the revised arrangement, children will receive a hot breakfast at 11 am and a hot meal at 1.30 pm. The weekly menu includes boiled or sprouted green gram, thick tuvar dal, vegetable pulao, green-vegetable muthia, spiced chickpeas and green gram with rice. Other dishes include sheera, sukhdi, bottle gourd dhebra, jaggery pudla, bhakhri, dhokla and idli, along with fruits and seasonal vegetables. The expanded allocation is intended to support a more diverse menu across different days of the week.

The Women and Child Development Department’s resolution provides a detailed daily cost breakdown for ingredients and local transportation. Of the ₹8.50 allocated per child, ₹2 is earmarked for fruits, ₹1.30 for whole green gram and ₹1.24 for tuvar dal. The remaining allocation comprises ₹0.85 for whole chickpeas, ₹0.83 for seasonal green vegetables, ₹0.65 for peanuts or sesame seeds, ₹0.525 for jaggery, ₹0.60 for spices and ₹0.50 for local transportation.

Under the revised funding arrangement, the Centre and Gujarat will continue to contribute ₹2.55 each towards the existing ₹5.10 daily allocation. The state will pay the additional ₹3.40 per child, taking the total ingredient procurement provision to ₹8.50 per day. 

Published on October 14, 2026