High Malnutrition Rate and Hunger in India, Shows New Report

A new report released by the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) gives us some disappointing news on India's rate of malnutrition. Despite being an agricultural country, it is sad to see that many people in the country do not have access to good food and the report reveals that India has a higher rate of malnutrition than North Korea and Myanmar. 

India ranked 100 out of 119 countries on the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2017. The situation seems to have worsened as last year it ranked 97 out of 118 countries. GHI is multidimensional measure that describes state of hunger situation on regional, national and global level. It is published every year by the IFPRI since 2006. 

This low ranking is suggests high rates of malnutrition and hunger in India. The report was based on four critical factors that are undernourishment, child mortality, child wasting, and child stunting. A GHI score of between 20 and 34.9 points reflects serious hunger levels; between 35 and 49.9 is alarming, and the situation is extremely alarming if it is over 50.

The report indicates that more than 20% of Indian children under the age of five have lower weight in relation to their height and about 33% are too short as per their age. Most of India's neighbors fared better on the hunger index except Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Central African Republic (CAR) has the highest GHI 2017score and has been categorized as “extremely alarming”.

While India's GHI score has dropped from 46.2 in 1992 to 31.4 in 2017 over the years, the situation is still considered 'serious' as per the report. Although a lot of efforts are being made to eliminate given the launch of the action plan on 'undernourishment free India' by 2022.