Assam: Fortified rice drive intensified to combat micronutrient deficiencies

Staff reporter

Guwahati: A sensitization workshop on fortified rice was held at a private hotel on Wednesday, jointly organized by the Government of Assam, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), and the Brahmaputra Foundation for Social Research and Livelihood Practice, under the Pushti Pratham campaign, a comprehensive awareness campaign dedicated to promoting fortified rice consumption in Assam.

The programme commenced by Gitashree Phukan, Senior Programme Associate at WFP India, highlighted the state’s goal of achieving 100% fortified rice distribution through the Public Distribution System (PDS).

Dr. Manash Pratim Sarma, Dean of the Faculty of Science at Assam down town University and a key member of the Technical Support Unit on Rice Fortification, remarked that malnutrition is frequently rooted not only in pre-existing medical conditions but also in inadequate and imbalanced diets, culminating in both under nutrition and micronutrient deficiencies.

Dr. Shariqua Yunus, Head of the Nutrition and School Feeding Unit at WFP, addressed widespread public misconceptions regarding fortified rice. She articulated that fears around the rice being synthetic, artificial, or altering the organoleptic properties of food are scientifically unfounded. “It is completely safe and contains essential micronutrients like iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12,” she said.

Mili Das, Inspector at the Commissionerate of Food, Public Distribution and Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology, reiterated the department’s strategic objective of ensuring fortified rice distribution across three pivotal public platforms—Public Distribution System (PDS), Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), and PM POSHAN. Confronting persistent misinformation, she dispelled the pervasive myth equating fortified rice with “plastic rice.”

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