It is a fact that over the generations, the nutritional status of the population has become poor, leading to sub-standard health outcomes (“We need a Nutrition Mission”, July 22). This can be largely attributed to the lack of attention paid to the well-being of the girl child right from infancy through adolescence and then marriage and pregnancy. To end this vicious cycle, the education of the girl child, her mother and even mother-in-law is necessary so that they are empowered to ensure their own nutrition and well-being. Pre-pregnancy nutritional status can be improved by delaying the age of marriage and a woman’s first pregnancy.
Lalitha Ramaswamy,Coimbatore
The dismal ranking of India on all health indicators is a reflection of two evils that continue to affect our country — high income inequality and corruption. The three key schemes pointed out by the writer, i.e. MDM, ICDS and PDS, to deal with poor health standards have also been felled by these evils. ICDS workers are paid a meagre salary and quite irregularly, which affects their ability to deliver the goods. Even though it covers about 120 million children, the MDM scheme is mired in corruption which affects the quality of food served to children.
The PDS scheme does not seem to reach those it is meant for as I wonder how many people below the poverty line have proof of address. These hard facts are bound to defeat the very objectives of the schemes. A review of their functioning is called for.
Kanika Garg,New Delhi
The entire discourse on development and ‘India Shining’ could be in peril if our human capital is not empowered and able enough to ensure further development of our country. The abysmal situation of malnutrition needs to be addressed more effectively with greater focus on rural India. It is strange that there are pockets of prosperity amid a sea of poverty and it is these pockets that are dictating the course of policies. The government needs to carry out a social audit of nutrition schemes while making the bureaucrat more accountable and vigilant.
Gagan Pratap Singh,Noida, Uttar Pradesh
The article reminded me how many adolescent girls start their careers as nurses in Kerala and appear to be underweight and anaemic during screening procedures. Most are excellent in their work. Perhaps the health indices need modification to make them more appropriate to regional variations in body morphology and a better understanding of anaemia.
Dr. Mathew K. Jose,Kochi
It is disappointing to see that India ranks low in terms of basic nutritional indicators. We appear to be lulled into complacency when the developed world cites our overall growth rate. The fact is that we still do not have any solutions for deep-rooted factors like malnutrition and social discrimination which are dragging us down. A close read of the article suggests that adolescent girls, women and children are in the red zone despite nutrition missions. The lack of effective implementation of these schemes seems to be the problem.
Vijay Singh,Rewari, Haryana
