Bhubaneswar: State govt Monday launched a pioneering pilot programme to develop an AI-based tool for child anthropometry beoming the first state to do so. The initiative aimed at enhancing the accuracy and efficiency of child growth monitoring, was inaugurated during a five-day training-cum-workshop on “AI for Growth Monitoring: Development of an AI Tool for Child Anthropometry”.
The workshop marked the beginning of a unique collaboration between the ministry of women and child development, Union govt, Wadhwani AI, ICMR-RMRC, Bhubaneswar and Poshan Abhiyaan.
The AI tool under development will allow anganwadi workers (AWWs) to record critical child growth metrics like weight, height, head circumference, and chest circumference by using short videos captured on basic smartphones. This innovative approach is expected to improve the precision of anthropometric assessments and facilitate early identification of malnutrition.
A detailed training module was unveiled during the event to equip the field teams with the skills required for accurate data collection. Over the next five days, field investigators will undergo hands-on training by experts from ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition, ICMR-RMRC Bhubaneswar, and Wadhwani AI. The training will focus on standardized methods to measure child growth indicators.
Following the training, the trained investigators will collect data over 3 to 4 months across six districts of Balasore, Cuttack, Ganjam, Jajpur, Keonjhar, and Mayurbhanj, as part of the pilot assessment. Women and child development secretary Subha Sarma, ICMR director Sanghamitra Pati and other dignitaries were present.
States like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh are expected to follow Odisha’s lead in piloting this AI tool, official sources said.