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The Hindu
a day ago
- Health
- The Hindu
The complex web of factors behind India's persistent stunting crisis
In 2018, when POSHAN Abhiyaan was launched, the government had set a target to reduce stunting among children in India by at least 2% points each year. A stunted child is too short for his or her age as a result of chronic or recurrent malnutrition. In 2016, 38.4% of children under five were stunted in India. As per this plan, the share should have fallen to 26.4% by 2022. During the launch, however, the government had set an even more ambitious target — to bring stunting down to 25% by 2022 — a goal it called 'Mission 25 by 2022'. Seven years after the launch, Poshan Tracker data for June 2025 showed that 37% of children under five in India were stunted — barely 1% point lower than in 2016 as shown in the chart below. 'The fact that the needle has barely moved points to deeper systemic issues,' says Dr. Vandana Prasad, a community paediatrician and former member of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights. She calls persistent stunting 'the tip of the iceberg of deprivation'. Research shows that stunting is linked to a host of factors — from teenage pregnancies and poor diets of both the mother and the child to anaemia during pregnancy and inadequate breastfeeding in the early years. Evidence also points to associations with caesarean deliveries (C-section), children living in unsanitary conditions, and drinking unsafe water. Data further shows a strong link between stunting and the mother's level of education. 'Stunting is often visible right at the time of birth. Nearly half of India's stunted children are already small when they are born,' says Dr. Prasad, underscoring how deeply it is tied to maternal health. Teen mothers are more likely to give birth to babies who struggle to grow. Experts say this is because a woman's body is not ready for pregnancy at such a young age. Adolescent mothers are also less likely to be able to adequately care for their child after birth. Despite legal restrictions, child marriages have not been eradicated in India. Consequently, as of 2019-21, close to 7% of women aged 15-19 had begun childbearing in India. Education plays a key role in breaking the cycle of stunting. Data from 2019-21 shows that nearly 46% of children born to mothers with no schooling were stunted, compared to only 26% of children whose mothers had 12 or more years of schooling. Mothers with higher levels of education are far more likely to access antenatal care, follow better nutrition practices, and delay early pregnancies, all of which improve child health outcomes. C-sections have increased in India from 9% in 2005-06 to over 22% in 2021. While C-sections are not a direct cause of stunting, they can disrupt early breastfeeding practices. Babies delivered surgically often miss out on immediate breastfeeding, especially the first milk or colostrum, which contains all the nutrients an infant needs. 'C-sections can directly affect the woman's ability to initiate breastfeeding, because she herself is sick or may be isolated from the baby, who has been taken away to the SNCU (special newborn care units) or NICU (neonatal intensive care unit),' says Dr. Prasad. While India has a strong tradition of breastfeeding, only 64% of babies under the age of six months are exclusively breastfed. Here, class divides play a serious role. 'A teacher in a government school may get six months' maternity leave to breastfeed. But a domestic worker is back to work within two weeks. How will she feed her child every two hours as required,' Dr. Prasad asks. The quality of diet for both the mother and child is another key factor linked to stunting. Carbohydrate-heavy meals dominate most Indian households, especially among the poor. 'In some Adivasi communities I have worked in, people eat mounds of rice because that is all they have access to. People eat dal once a week or even once a month,' says Dr. Prasad. Only around 11% of Indian children under two years met the standard for a minimum acceptable diet in India, as of 2019-21. The minimum acceptable diet measures the share of children aged 6-23 months who receive both adequate dietary diversity and meal frequency (or, for non-breastfed children, at least two milk feeds along with diverse and frequent meals). While some States have introduced eggs in Anganwadi meals, access to protein and micronutrient-rich foods is limited. Anaemia among mothers, closely tied to women's nutrition, is another reason for stunting among children. In 2019-21, in India, nearly 57% of women aged 15-49 and 67% of children under the age of five were anaemic. Sanitation deepens the disadvantage. Children exposed to open defecation and unsafe water are far more vulnerable to infections that sap their nutrition and stunt their growth. Open defecation, in particular, contaminates groundwater, which enters drinking supplies. This disrupts gut health by damaging the balance of good bacteria needed to absorb food. According to 2019-21 data, 19% of Indian households still practiced open defecation. Dr. Prasad explains, 'There is a vicious cycle between infection and malnutrition. A malnourished child falls sick more often. When sick, the child eats less and absorbs less, which pushes the child further into malnourishment.' The consequences stretch far beyond height. 'Stunting has a correlation with poverty, less education, less employability, and weaker cognitive skills,' she says. 'It locks families into an intergenerational cycle of deprivation.'
New Indian Express
08-08-2025
- New Indian Express
75 per cent of Anganwadi beneficiaries registered for ‘Take Home Ration' successfully face captured: Minister
NEW DELHI: The Centre has completed face capturing for 75.12% of eligible beneficiaries registered for 'Take Home Ration' at Anganwadi centres, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday. The Ministry of Women and Child Development has made the face recognition system for take-home ration distribution and child attendance monitoring at Anganwadi centres mandatory from 1 July. The Face Recognition System (FRS) module was initially implemented as a pilot in August 2024. Since then, duty holders in the states and Union Territories have allegedly been trained to perform facial recognition and verify beneficiaries with the Aadhaar database, Minister of State for Women and Child Development, Savitri Thakur, said in a written reply. This onboarding process is performed once in the lifetime of the beneficiary on Poshan Tracker. She said the FRS module has been developed as part of the Poshan Tracker application. To verify a beneficiary through Aadhaar identification, eKYC is performed along with capturing the live image of the beneficiary. 'As on 5 August 2025, face capturing and e-KYC of 3.69 crore beneficiaries out of the 4.91 crore eligible beneficiaries registered for Take Home Ration (THR), which is almost 75.12%, have already been completed,' she said. On data protection of beneficiaries, she said the data of the beneficiary, which is collected, is subject to all existing data protection protocols, which mandate purpose limitation, informed consent, and access restrictions. 'All requests and responses related to Face Verification are encrypted during transit, ensuring data is protected from interception or tampering. No images or data are stored permanently on the device. As a precautionary measure, all cached or temporary data is wiped automatically when the Anganwadi worker logs out of the application,' she said.
Hans India
07-08-2025
- Health
- Hans India
Digital Grievance Redressal in WCD Schemes Sees Major Uptake, Say the Centre
New Delhi: The Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) has reported significant progress in leveraging digital platforms for grievance redressal and citizen engagement, in response to a query raised in the Rajya Sabha by Maya Naroliya, Amar Pal Maurya, Dr. K. Laxman, and Kiran Choudhry. Answering a question, Minister of State for Women and Child Development Savitri Thakur stated that the Ministry received 15,761 public grievances through the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS) between August 1, 2023, and July 31, 2025. An additional 414 pending cases were carried forward, and 15,782 grievances were resolved during the same period. CPGRAMS, a 24x7 digital platform accessible via web and mobile apps (including UMANG), allows citizens to file complaints and track their status using a unique registration ID. The system also includes an appeal and feedback mechanism for unresolved cases. Oversight is provided by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, which regularly reviews pendency and quality of redressal. In addition to CPGRAMS, the Ministry operates the Women Helpline (181) under Mission Shakti, which has assisted over 1.06 crore women since its inception in April 2015. For children in distress, the Child Helpline (1098) functions round-the-clock and is integrated with the national emergency response system (ERSS-112). The Ministry has also implemented the Poshan Tracker app to monitor Anganwadi services and nutrition delivery. As of July 1, 2025, a Facial Recognition System (FRS) has been made mandatory for the distribution of Take-Home Ration (THR), ensuring benefits reach only registered beneficiaries. To further strengthen grievance redressal under Mission Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0, PM CARES, and Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), a dedicated call centre with toll-free number 14408 has been established. Grievances received are routed to relevant field functionaries via the Poshan Tracker dashboard, with a directive to resolve cases within 30 days.
Hans India
05-08-2025
- Health
- Hans India
Collector Conducts Surprise Visit to Anganwadi Center, Emphasizes Timely Nutrition and Child Welfare
Gadwal: District Collector B.M. Santosh emphasized the importance of ensuring timely delivery of nutritious food to pregnant women, lactating mothers, and young children through Anganwadi centers. On Tuesday, the Collector conducted a surprise inspection at the Anganwadi center located in Ganjipet area of Gadwal town. During the visit, he interacted with staff and inquired about the services being provided to the children and mothers at the center. He also engaged children in learning English alphabets and appreciated their responses, stating that the goal should be to enable every child to confidently participate and learn. The Collector stressed the importance of providing quality foundational education to children to strengthen their early learning. He personally checked the height and weight of the children, advising staff to pay special attention to those showing signs of undernutrition. He examined the mobile application used for data entry and directed the Anganwadi teacher to ensure accurate and systematic recording of information as per guidelines. Highlighting the importance of preventing nutritional deficiencies such as SAM (Severe Acute Malnutrition) and MAM (Moderate Acute Malnutrition), he instructed that children be given a balanced and adequate diet to maintain good health. Further, the Collector urged regular updates on nutrition-related information using the Poshan Tracker and NHFS (National Health and Family Survey) mobile apps. He also emphasized continuous monitoring of the health of pregnant women and educating them on the importance of nutritional intake during pregnancy. He instructed that all necessary amenities including proper food, hygiene, and basic facilities be maintained to ensure that children at Anganwadi centers do not face any hardships. The centers must be run efficiently and effectively for the well-being of all beneficiaries. Anganwadi teachers Razia, Lakshmi, and Narasimha, among others, participated in the program.
New Indian Express
05-08-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
Poshan Tracker data shows persistent malnutrition among children; central, eastern states worst hit
MANGALURU: As of June 2025, 5.46% of children under five in India were found to be wasted (low weight for height), and 15.93% were underweight (low weight for age), according to the latest Poshan Tracker data. Among children aged 0–6 years, 16.50% were recorded as underweight, indicating that malnutrition continues to pose a significant public health challenge across the country. The figures expose stark disparities among states. Bihar reported 20.98% underweight and 9.31% wasting rates, among the highest in India, followed closely by Madhya Pradesh (24.82% underweight, 8.19% wasting) and Jharkhand (19.13% underweight, 6.68% wasting). Other high-burden states include Tripura, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh, with underweight prevalence ranging from 17% to nearly 20%. In the Union Territory of Lakshadweep, wasting reached 11.62%—the highest in the country—while 22.54% of children there were underweight. Despite a national push to improve nutrition through Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, the data reveals uneven outcomes. Many states, particularly in central and eastern India, continue to grapple with persistently high malnutrition rates. However, there are clear examples of improvement and effective intervention.
