Economic independence is one grim reality that India has been facing even after more than 60 years of political independence. That India ranks 94th in the Global Hunger Index of 119 countries with 230 million rural poor people grappling with hunger and undernourishment, which is unfortunately the highest for any country in the world, is something does not augur well for our growth story.
It is heartening to note that malnutrition accounts for nearly 50 per cent child deaths in India as every third adult between the age of 15-49 years is reported to be thin, which means Body Mass Index (BMI) is less than 18.5 as against the normal weight of 18.5-24.9 (BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to both adult men and women).
This is what the United Nations World Food Programme’s latest report says. The report records that more than 27 per cent of the world's undernourished population lives in India while 43 per cent of children (under 5 years) in the country are underweight. Don’t be surprised at the picture of a feeble, undernourished child of Ethiopia. India has more than 70 per cent of children (under-5) suffering from anaemia and 80 per cent of them don't get vitamin supplements. Well, this staggering figure is not only among the highest in the world, but also higher than sub-Saharan Africa's figure of 28 per cent. Ii is also much higher than the global average of 25 per cent.
Women are next sufferers as their percentage with chronic energy deficiency is stagnant at 40 per cent over six years with the proportion, but in fact increasing in Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana.
As per the report on the state of food insecurity in rural India, more than 1.5 million children are at risk of becoming malnourished because of rising global food prices. As against the required more than 250 million tonnes by 2015, food production during 2008-09 is estimated to be 228 million tonnes. The report criticized the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) thus: "Apart from failing to serve the intended goal of reduction of food subsidies, the TPDS also led to greater food insecurity for large sections of the poor and the near-poor. These targeting errors arise due to imperfect information, inexact measurement of household characteristics, corruption and inefficiency."
The report also questioned the government's definitions of hunger and poverty. "The fact that calorie deprivation is increasing during a period when the proportion of rural population below the poverty line is claimed to be declining rapidly, highlights the increasing disconnect between official poverty estimates and calorie deprivation," it said.
This is a shock, if not shame, that nutrition security is still a far cry in India whereby the poor people, especially children and women have been denied physical, economic and social access to balanced diet, clean drinking water, sanitation and primary healthcare, which are fundamentals to living. Our policy makers and rulers must answer as to why almost 80 per cent of rural households do not have access to toilets within their premises, albeit the figure exceeds to 90 per cent in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and MP.
Going by the World Bank’s estimates, a third of the global poor now live in India, while the Planning Commission of India has estimated that 27.5 per cent of the population was living below the poverty line in 2004–2005, down from 51.3 per cent in 1977–1978, and 36 percent in 1993-1994. Now see the comparative income levels. In 1947, the average annual income in India was US $439, compared with US $619 for China, US $770 for South Korea, and US $936 for Taiwan. By 1999, it just increased to US $1,818 for India, while China with US $3,259, South Korea with US $13,317 and Taiwan with US $15,720 fared far better India.
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