As India progresses economically, making inroads into energy and infrastructure, and liberalising various sectors. It would be discerning if policymakers underscored the importance of various socio-economic impacts on its burgeoning population.
The Global Hunger Index represents a worrying trend of what meets the eye as India slips seven places to rank 101 among 116 countries in the latest report prepared as part of a partnership between Concern Worldwide, Ireland’s largest aid and humanitarian agency, and Welthungerhilfe.
Published annually, the report categorises India as “serious” with only 15 other countries below it on the Index. Moreover, countries such as Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh have ranked better than India. Also, globally, India is ranked among the worst in ‘child wasting’ or ‘weight for height’, with its performance even worse than Djibouti and Somalia.
The Global Hunger Index prepared first in 2006 uses a set of four indicators.
- Child wasting (percentage of children below five years of age who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition)
- Child stunting (percentage of children below five years of age who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition)
- Child mortality (the mortality rate of children under the age of five)
Based on these parameters, countries were rated on a 100-point-‘GHI Severity Scale’ where 0 is the best score and 100 the worst.
India’s performance hasn’t been very encouraging with the following score.
- Undernourishment: 14% of India’s population is undernourished (2017-19). It was 16.3% during 2011-13.
- Child Wasting: 3% (2015-19). It was 15.1% in 2010-14.
- Child Stunting: Currently 7%, this score has improved significantly from 54% in 2000 to less than 35% now.
- Child Mortality: 7%. It was 5.2% in 2012.
Despite the damning indictments, it is also imperative to understand the impact of Covid-19 on the level of food security not just in India but also in the world.
The government has also refuted the methodology of the findings, calling it unscientific and questioning the role of the estimates of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) that were used to arrive at the score. They further questioned the complete disregard of its massive effort to ensure food security for the entire population during the Covid period, verifiable data on which is available.
Just as India wins plaudits from the world on the economic front with its bold decisions, liberalised approach and opening up of the economy, it brings a verifiable and result-oriented approach in the socio-human capital to truly assemble itself as a superpower.