Indian government to roll out AI-based growth monitoring of children to track malnutrition: Anil Malik, secretary, Women and child development

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The government is set to expand the use of artificial intelligence in social welfare programmes, with the Women and Child Development Ministry preparing to roll out AI-based growth monitoring tools to track nutrition outcomes more effectively, Secretary Anil Malik said.

Malik noted that the ministry is entering a phase where AI tools will be deployed at scale, particularly through digital recordings, to monitor child growth and detect early signs of malnutrition.

The initiative is aimed at improving real-time tracking and strengthening targeted interventions in nutrition programmes.

He added that artificial intelligence could significantly improve monitoring capabilities in large welfare networks such as Anganwadi services.

As part of the broader digital push, the ministry is looking to introduce an AI-enabled chatbot designed to assist Anganwadi workers.

The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, under the POSHAN Abhiyaan (PM’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nutrition), had provided over 1.1 million smartphones to Anganwadi Workers.

The government is in the process of upgrading them to 5G phones.

The chatbot is intended to provide frontline workers with quick guidance on nutrition, health practices and programme implementation, helping improve service delivery at the grassroots level.

Malik said the government plans to scale up AI deployment across multiple initiatives in the coming months, signalling a larger shift toward technology-driven welfare administration.