Hunger is more than just a pang in your stomach. It is a systematic problem of malnourishment which kills more than 6 million people every year. From stunted children to undernourished farmers who go hungry every night, hunger is a menace and not just deprivation. India is home to 1/4th of the world’s underweight children under 5 years of age, who are unlikely to lead a healthy life because of the myriad of problems that hunger brings with it.
Untimely deaths, chronic diseases and a massive loss in the productivity of the nation as a whole should not be reduced to just statistics worth repeating in political narratives but needs to become an issue. It is high time we discuss hunger as not just an economic but a social problem which spreads due to the callous attitude meted out to it. The way to end hunger passes through the awareness lane; once we all join hands and realize the fact that for a wide majority, sleeping after a filling meal is but a dream.
To tackle the apathy towards this menace and stir up the conversation once again, Youth Ki Awaaz and World Vision India are coming together for a one of a kind blog-a-thon to use the power of blogs to bring back the focus on hunger as a structural issue that needs active attention.
We want you to use the power of your blog to stage a post, a video, an article, a poem, a doodle or a photo story about what “hunger is…”. You can use personal narratives of how you have seen hunger around you, or build a new story. You can submit a fictional account or a fact based article — the sky is the limit.
There is no easy answer to hunger and malnutrition. Lack of nutritious food affects children’s physical and mental development. Children can suffer from stunting (low height for their age) and wasting (low weight for their height).
Through their Famine 2014 campaign, World Vision India aims at ensuring Nutrition for Every Child.
The blog-a-thon has now begun. You can submit starting today and before 20th September at youthkiawaaz.com/hungeris
The best blog entry will receive a MOTO E mobile phone as a token of appreciation.