Mains Daily Question
May 29, 2023

Effectively addressing poverty in India requires not only implementing income-enhancing policies but also prioritising nutritional outcomes. Comment. Also, highlight the various initiatives taken by the government in this regard.

Model Answer

Approach

Introduction: Show the interrelationship between poverty, income, and nutrition. Provide some statistics on the current situation of poverty and nutrition in India.

Body: Discuss the nutritional outcomes that need to be prioritised. Highlight the various initiatives taken by the government in this regard

Conclusion: Suggest some recommendations for further action.

Answer:

Poverty and malnutrition are closely interlinked, and individuals living in poverty are more likely to suffer from malnutrition due to inadequate access to food, healthcare, and other basic resources. Malnutrition, in turn, can exacerbate poverty by reducing productivity and increasing healthcare costs, leading to a vicious cycle of poverty and malnutrition.

Millions of Indians suffer from multifaceted poverty. In 2019, 10.2% of the population was poor (World Bank). Income alone does not measure poverty because it does not include health, education, nutrition, and sanitation. Thus, to reduce poverty in India, policies must improve income opportunities and nutritional outcomes.

Micronutrient deficiencies, or "hidden hunger," are a major obstacle to improving nutrition. In 2019, 156.8 million Indians were undernourished, according to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022 report.

Therefore, it is important to prioritise the following five nutritional outcomes that need to be addressed in India:

  • Stunting: Stunting is the impaired growth and development of children due to chronic undernutrition. Stunting can have long-term effects on cognitive development, school performance, immune function and chronic disease risk.
    • It affects 38.4% of children under 5 years of age in India, making it the country with the highest number of stunted children in the world.
  • Wasting: Wasting is the low weight-for-height of children due to acute undernutrition. Wasting can increase the risk of mortality, infections and morbidity in children.
    • It affects 21% of children under 5 years of age in India, making it one of the countries with the highest burden of wasting globally.
  • Anaemia: Anaemia is the low level of haemoglobin in the blood due to iron deficiency or other causes. Anaemia can impair physical and mental development, productivity, immunity and maternal and child health outcomes.
    • It affects 58.6% of children under 5 years of age, 53.1% of women of reproductive age and 22.7% of men in India.
  • Overweight/obesity: Overweight/obesity is the excess weight-for-height or body mass index (BMI) due to excessive fat accumulation. Overweight/obesity can increase the risk of non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer.
    • It affects 20.7% of women and 18.6% of men in India, making it a growing public health concern.
  • Micronutrient deficiency: Micronutrient deficiency is the lack of essential vitamins and minerals in the diet, such as vitamin A, iodine, zinc and folate. It affects a large proportion of the population in India, especially children and women. It can cause various health problems, such as blindness, goitre, diarrhoea, birth defects and neural tube defects.
  • Drinking water: About 18 per cent of households do not have access to improved sources of drinking water such as piped water or protected wells. This exposes them to waterborne diseases such as cholera, hepatitis A and E and fluorosis.

The government of India has taken various initiatives to improve nutritional outcomes, especially for women and children, who are most vulnerable to malnutrition. Some of these initiatives include:

  • National Nutrition Mission (NNM) also known as Poshan Abhiyaan, is launched in 2018 to reduce stunting, underweight, anaemia, and low birth weight among children and pregnant women. The mission aims to reach 100 million beneficiaries by 2022 through convergence, the use of technology, community mobilisation, and behavioural change communication.
  • National Food Security Mission launched in 2007 provides subsidised food grains to 75% of the rural and 50% of the urban population under the National Food Security Act 2013. This will augment India’s nutrition needs by increasing the production and consumption of nutritious crops that are rich in protein, iron, calcium and other micronutrients.
  • Zero Hunger Programme was initiated in 2017 in three districts of Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal of ending hunger by 2030. It involves interventions such as crop diversification, biofortification, kitchen gardens, nutrition education and local food processing.
  • Eat Right India Movement: This is a campaign launched in 2018 by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to promote healthy eating habits and reduce the consumption of salt, sugar and fat.
  • Food Fortification: This is a process of adding micronutrients such as iron, iodine, zinc, and vitamins A and D to staple foods such as rice, wheat flour, oil, milk and salt to address micronutrient deficiencies in the population. The government has issued standards and guidelines for food fortification and supports its implementation through various schemes such as ICDS, mid-day meals and public distribution system.

 

The Economic Survey 2022-23 notes that "India's transition from food security to nutritional security is an ongoing process." The way ahead to improve nutritional outcomes in India could include increasing access to and availability of nutrient-rich foods, promoting education and awareness about nutrition, supporting programmes that provide supplementary feeding for vulnerable populations, and implementing policies to address food insecurity and malnutrition.

Subjects : Current Affairs
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