Evaluation of Anganwadi Centers (awcs) at Doiwala and Raipur Block in Dehradun, Uttarakhand

Background: Anganwadi Centre (AWC) is government-sponsored mother and child-care center in India. Anganwadi Workers (AWW) are the kingpin of AWC, whose success depends on a large extent on ability and capacity of AWW to perform their roles and responsibilities. Aim: To evaluate the present condition of AWCS in terms of infrastructure and facilities in Dehradun district, Uttarakhand. Settings and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted for a period of one month in 17 AWCs (9 AWCs from Doiwala block and 8 AWCs from Raipur block) of Uttarakhand. Methods and Material: Pretested predesigned semistructured questionnaire was used to collect information from the community development project officer (CDPO), supervisors of AWCs and sarpanch. Statistical Analysis: Data was entered into excel sheets and analyzed using SPSS version 23 utilizing appropriate statistical methods. Results: On situation analysis it was found that the AWCs have limited infrastructure and equipment’s to carry out health-related activities. In ten out of seventeen AWCs, buildings had cement/concrete roofs and the rest of them had asbestos sheets roof. Only five of them had playgrounds and majority of them were without weighing machine, tap water, toilet and electricity facility. Conclusion: Evaluation of AWCs found unacceptable gaps in the present study. Basic facilities and logistics such as indoor play space, food storage area, electricity and toilet facilities and weighing scales were deficit in these AWCs. Strict actions need to be taken by the Government to fulfill such gaps so that successful delivery of health services to the beneficiaries be assured.