Malnutrition in India

Context:

• Government has told the Rajya Sabha that there are over 9 lakh children with severe malnutrition in the country as of November 30 last year.

Reasons behind Malnutrition:

• Calorie deficiency
• Protein Hunger
• Micronutrient malnutrition

Other reasons:

• Poor uneducated women don’t focus on children nutrition.
• Poor sanitations, lack of access to good quality food, lack of access to mineral drinking water are biggest reasons behind it.
• Birthing child in lower age, poor nutritional status of pregnant women and lack of adequate gap between two children are other reasons.
• Low per capita income, Higher food inflation especially fruit inflation, monodiet (having rice and lentils only) further aggravates the malnutritions.
• Poor implementation of the Policies like ICDS (Integrated Child development scheme), corruption in implementation of Mid-day meal scheme, lack of convergence between different ministries is other policy related causes.
• Poor fund utilization: Many States have only utilized 16% of their allotted funds in National Nutrition Mission.

Methods to mitigate malnutrition:

ICDS scheme: It focuses on improving the nutritional and health status of children in the age group 0-6 years. It involves:

• Supplementary nutrition (SNP),
• Immunization,
• Health check-up,
• Referral services,
• Pre-school non-formal education

Mid day meal:  It focuses on improving the nutritional status of children.

Poshan Abhiyan:

• POSHAN Abhiyaan has been set up by Government of India on 18.12.2017 for a three-year time frame commencing from 2017-18 with an aim to reduce the level of stunting in children (0-6 years), under-nutrition (underweight prevalence) in children (0-6 years) and Low Birth Weight at 2% per annum and reduce anaemia among young children (6-59 months), women and adolescent girls at 3% per annum across the country.
• It ensures convergence with various programmes, organising Community Based Events; incentivising States/UTs for achieving goals.

Other Approach:

• Include pulses in the PDS, mid day meal for dealing with protein hunger.
• National Horticulture mission is an attempt to reduce the micronutrient malnutrition.

Challenges in the Schemes:

• Schemes has not been able to utilise the budget allotted to them. Most revised figures have been downgraded from estimate budgeted figures.
• In Poshan Abhiyan, much focus has been on digitisation of the process than achieving the convergence in the schemes.
• National nutrition mission doesn’t focus on making low cost nutrition diet popular among the masses to make nutrition diet available for everyone.
• It doesn’t make focus on disseminating information to public about basic dietary practices for children, adolescents, and mothers. For example, what is a balanced diet on a limited budget.
• National nutrition mission doesn’t focus on breaking down the silos existing between health and women & child ministry to provide a comprehensive package for dealing with malnutrition.

Way forward:

• Focus on nutrition-related interventions, beyond digitisation;
• Intensify the convergence component of POSHAN Abhiyaan, using the platform to bring all departments in one place to address nutrition;
• Direct the announcement to form 10,000 farmer producer organisations with an allocation of Rs. 500 crore to nutrition-based activities;
• Promotion of youth schemes to be directed to nutrition-agriculture link activities in rural areas;
• Give explicit emphasis and fund allocation to agriculture-nutrition linked schemes;
• Ensure early disbursement of funds and an optimum utilisation of schemes linked to nutrition.