Setting a proper diet plan

Mains Paper 3: Economy
Prelims level: PDS
Mains level: Public Distribution System- objectives, functioning, limitations, revamping; issues of buffer stocks and food security

Context

•  India has been ranked at 103 out of 119 countries, with hunger levels categorised as “serious”, in the Global Hunger Index 2018.
•  India’s child malnourishment level is not only the highest in the world but varies considerably across States.
•  As per the National Family Health Survey-2016, the proportion of stunted (low height for age) children under five is significantly higher (38.4%) than global (22.9%) averages.
•  The underweight (low weight for age) children rate (35.7%) is a lot higher than the global average (13.5%) too.
•  India is home to over 53.3 million stunted, 49.6 million underweight and 29.2 million wasted (low weight for height) children under five.

Major challenges

•  Growing prosperity has hardly made any significant dent in chronic malnutrition of children.
•  Faster economic growth has enormous benefits, but it is by no means sufficient and sustainable if millions of children remain undernourished, as it not only impacts early childhood health and imposes disease burden but also affects education, wages and productivity when they grow up, which will impact India’s growth.

Where does the solution lie?

•  One problem lies with the current thinking of growth-oriented development.
•  The low income and Empowered-Action-Group (EAG) States face major challenges to improve malnutrition, but, two EAG States, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, have performed better on
  this front compared to Gujarat and Maharashtra where per capita income is almost double.
•  The development path prevalent in Gujarat is more about growth and investment, which, however, has not been able to translate as better nutritional status in the State.
•  Odisha, which is a low income State, has a better network of Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), public health facility/workforce per lakh population and educational attainment among women, which have translated into a better nutritional status when compared with Gujarat.
•  The tribals, rural, poor and illiterate mothers’ children are badly off in so-called developed States of Haryana, Gujarat and Punjab. These groups are also affected in poorer States of
  U.P., Bihar, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh.
•  Around two-thirds of stunted/underweight children are from 200 districts of both less developed and developed States.

Agriculture v. hunger

•  Another prominent idea is the need to link agriculture and nutrition, as agriculture provides answers to most nutrition problems.
•  It shows malnutrition continues to be high in agricultural surplus States like Haryana (34% stunting and 29.5% underweight).
•  Worryingly, malnutrition in some of its agriculturally-developed districts (Karnal, Panipat, Sonipat, Rohtak as well as in Gurugram) is even higher than the average of Odisha.
•  Recently, Madhya Pradesh has registered double-digit growth in food grain production making it one of the wheat granaries of India, but acute malnutrition is still critical in most of its
  districts with a high proportion of underweight (42.8%) and stunted children (41.9%).

Way forward

•  An inclusive and holistic approach, including controlling/regulating food price, strengthening the public distribution system (PDS) and income support policies for making food cheaper are important steps.
•  The ICDS was a high impact nutrition intervention, but its universal availability and quality are questionable due to poor functioning.
•  The government must broaden the ICDS programme by ensuring diversity in food items in worst-hit districts.
•  The launch of the National Nutrition Mission as a strategy to fight maternal and child malnutrition is a welcome step towards achieving the targets of underweight and stunted children under five years from 35.7% to 20.7% and from 38.4% to 25% respectively by 2022.
•  But sustained budgetary commitment towards nutrition components is not sharply visible.

Online Coaching for UPSC PRE Exam

General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

Prelims Questions:

Q1. Which among the following is/are key objectives of Integrated Management of Public Distribution System?
1. To prevent duplication of Ration Cards and beneficiaries.
2. Allow beneficiaries to take ration at subsidized rates from any place across the country.
3. To bring transparency and efficiency in distribution of food grains.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 2 and 3
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 3 only

Answer: B

Mains Questions:
Q.1) To tackle malnutrition, food prices must be regulated and the PDS strengthened in both developed and poor States. Critically analyse the statement.