Mains Marathon

Approach:

• Begin with a brief introduction highlighting the paradox of hunger in a food-surplus nation like India.
• In the body, analyze structural causes of hunger (poverty, distribution gaps, policy disconnects) with data (GHI rank, NFSA coverage) and propose solutions.
• Conclude suitably.

Introduction:

Despite being one of the largest food producers globally, India ranks 105th out of 127 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2024, with a score of 27.3, indicating a serious hunger crisis. This paradox highlights the ongoing challenges of food insecurity and malnutrition, which persist in India despite significant advancements in food production.

Body:

Key Causes of Hunger in India:

• Economic Disparities: Despite being one of the fastest-growing economies, India struggles with deep-rooted income inequality.
  • Economic growth has not ensured equitable distribution of resources, and poverty remains a significant barrier to accessing nutritious food.
  • A substantial proportion of the rural and urban poor lack purchasing power to buy diverse and nutrient-rich food, leading to chronic hunger and undernutrition even in food-surplus regions.
• Inefficiencies in Food Distribution: India’s Public Distribution System (PDS), although instrumental in ensuring food access, suffers from systemic issues.
  • Leakages, exclusion errors, and limited coverage significantly undermine the potential of TPDS, with over 90 million eligible individuals- mainly tribal groups, migrants, and landless laborers- excluded, as per official estimates.
• Nutritional Deficiencies: Food security in India is often viewed through the lens of calorie intake rather than nutritional value.
  • Many food schemes provide mainly cereals, neglecting essential food groups like pulses, vegetables, dairy, and micronutrients.
  • As a result, widespread deficiencies in iron, vitamin A, and protein persist, especially among children and women.
• Child Malnutrition: India records high levels of child undernutrition, with 35.5% stunted and 18.7% wasted children, as per NFHS-5.
  • Wasting, the highest globally, signals acute undernourishment and poor health services.
  • Malnutrition during early years leads to irreversible cognitive and physical damage, perpetuating the poverty-hunger cycle.
• Social Inequality: Gender inequality exacerbates hunger. In many low-income families, women and girls eat last and least.
  • Societal norms often ignore women's nutritional needs, increasing their risk of anemia and low birthweight deliveries.
• Urbanization and Changing Diets: Urban migration has led to a dietary transition marked by reliance on cheap, processed foods.
  • The 2022 Tata-Cornell study reported that 51% of urban slum households in Delhi faced food insecurity, highlighting that affordability does not ensure dietary diversity.

Policy Interventions to Address Hunger:

• Strengthening the Public Distribution System (PDS): Improve targeting, eliminate exclusion errors, and include nutrition-sensitive components.
  • Digitization and portability under ‘One Nation One Ration Card’ must be expanded.
• Focus on Nutritional Adequacy: Promote millet consumption, biofortified crops, and diversify food baskets in welfare schemes to include pulses, vegetables, and animal proteins.
• Social Safety Nets and Awareness Programs: Scale up Poshan Abhiyan and PMGKAY, and implement local campaigns for healthy eating practices through schools and self-help groups.
• Investment in Maternal and Child Health: Integrate WASH, antenatal care, and breastfeeding support into ICDS and NHM frameworks.
• Inclusive Growth and Gender Equality: Design gender-transformative nutrition policies targeting adolescent girls, pregnant women, and female farmers.
• Leveraging Global Partnerships and Initiatives: Collaborate with WFP and align with SDG 2 to adopt global best practices in combating hunger and malnutrition.

Conclusion:

India's paradox of being a major food producer yet facing hunger highlights the need for a comprehensive approach to food insecurity. Improving food distribution, focusing on nutrition, addressing economic disparities, and implementing targeted policies can help achieve zero hunger.