Anand | Gujarat —The NDDB Foundation for Nutrition’s (NFN) National CSR Conclave titled “Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Nutrition Security & Malnutrition Mitigation” wasn inaugurated at Vigyan bhavan in New Delhi in the presence of Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, along with Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Panchayati Raj, and Annpurna Devi, Union Minister of Women and Child Development. Union Minister of State for Cooperation; Prof. S. P. Singh Baghel, Union Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Panchayati Raj; George Kurian, Union Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Minority Affairs; Dr Ashish Kumar Bhutani, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation; Naresh Pal Gangwar, Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying; Dr Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB; and other distinguished dignitaries.
The conclave brought together senior Ministers, Secretaries to the Government of India, leaders from corporates and PSUs, dairy cooperatives, development institutions and other key stakeholders to deliberate on collaborative approaches for combating malnutrition through CSR-led initiatives.
On the occasion, the Shishu Sanjeevani Programme under the CSR initiative of IDBI Bank, aimed at supporting 3,000 children at anganwadi centres in rural Nagpur through an energy-dense, fortified nutritional supplement developed by NDDB was launched. The third phase of the Giftmilk Programme under the CSR initiative of SAIL–Bhilai Steel Plant, benefiting around 4,000 government school children in mining-affected areas of Chhattisgarh was also launched. The fortified flavoured milk enriched with Vitamins A and D will be supplied by the NDDB-managed Chhattisgarh Milk Federation. The CSR partners supporting NFN’s nutrition initiatives were felicitated during the event.
Addressing the conclave, Piyush Goyal emphasised that CSR must go beyond statutory obligations and reflect India’s deep-rooted cultural ethos of giving back to society. He highlighted the whole-of-government approach, noting the synergy of multiple Ministries working together with NDDB to address malnutrition, and underscored that investing in nutrition is an investment in India’s future aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Rajiv Ranjan Singh stated that India’s dairy sector plays a pivotal role in ensuring nutritional security. With a per capita milk availability of about 485 grams per day, milk remains a vital source of nutrition for children, and through NFN initiatives such as Giftmilk and Shishu Sanjeevani, nutritional support is being extended to school and anganwadi children across the country.
Annpurna Devi highlighted that adequate nutrition is fundamental to building a strong and empowered India, with children at the centre of this vision, and appreciated the Giftmilk Programme as an effective model for delivering nutrition benefits at scale.
Shri Krishan Pal Gurjar, Prof. S. P. Singh Baghel and George Kurian underscored the importance of cooperatives, CSR and inter-ministerial collaboration in strengthening nutrition outcomes and advancing the Prime Minister’s vision of Sahkar se Samriddhi.
Welcoming the dignitaries, Dr Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB, stated that NFN was established during NDDB’s Golden Jubilee in 2015 to support nutrition for school children and vulnerable groups. He noted that since 2016, NFN has distributed about 44 lakh litres of milk to over 1.5 lakh children in 900 government schools and anganwadis across 19 States and Union Territories proving that the programme is more than just a glass of milk and symbolised a promise towards access to essential nutrition.
The inaugural session was followed y two technical sessions focusing on public interventions in nutrition and corporate–cooperative collaboration for nutrition security, with participation of around 1,200 stakeholders.
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