What happened: Poshan Tracker for near real-time Anganwadi monitoring

The Ministry of Women and Child Development launched the Poshan Tracker digital application to support near real-time monitoring and tracking of Anganwadi Centres (AWCs), Anganwadi Workers (AWWs), and beneficiaries on defined indicators under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0. The Ministry states that Poshan Tracker enables course correction through reviews of implementation across multiple parameters and supports near real-time data collection for Anganwadi services, including opening of AWCs, daily child attendance, ECCE activities, growth monitoring, and delivery of hot cooked meal (HCM) and Take-Home Ration (THR).

Background and earlier position: manual monitoring to technology-enabled governance

The Ministry references an outcome-based evaluation study of Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 conducted by the Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), NITI Aayog (2025). DMEO’s evaluation is cited in connection with Poshan Tracker as a shift from manual, paper-based systems to a technology-enabled governance framework under the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP).

What changed now: Aadhaar-linked tracking plus FRS-enabled THR distribution

The Ministry presents Poshan Tracker as a universal umbrella approach for beneficiaries who register and complete e-KYC for Facial Recognition System (FRS) based verification. The Ministry states that Aadhaar-based tracking supports proper identification of beneficiaries, prevention of leakages, and elimination of ghost entries. The Ministry states that 99.88% of registered beneficiaries are Aadhaar verified on the Poshan Tracker dashboard. For last-mile THR delivery, the Ministry states that Poshan Tracker incorporates FRS to provide THR to the intended beneficiary registered in Poshan Tracker. The Ministry also states that the Nominee Module enables a nominee to collect THR when the registered beneficiary cannot visit the Anganwadi Centre. The Ministry states that the nominee completes e-KYC once, and face matching is performed every time for THR collection on behalf of the beneficiary. The Ministry further states that beneficiaries can continue to receive THR even after addition of a nominee.

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