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Towards Hunger Free India - Media Coverage 21 April 2001, Business Standard,
New Delhi, India Food shortage still haunts 9
states in India: UN agency
By Our Correspondent
The World Food Programme of the United Nations has shot a hole in the India’s tall claim about food sufficiency and high production levels by saying that a vast part of northern and central India are still plagued by the problem of food insecurity. A report released by the agency shows that as many as nine states in the country are plagued by the problem of food shortage.
The report, titled Enabling Development: Food Assistance in South Asia says the states of Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan perennially suffer from food insecurity.
Among these states, Bihar and Jharkhand face the most acute crisis. The report says 25 million mothers and children in India are threatened by the problem of food insecurity. This problem of food insecurity has been, met partially through the integrated child development services of the government of India.
The security offered by the ICDS is, however, yet to benefit the poor in the states of Bihar and Jharkhand. The report says it has been observed after studies that the states, which suffer from high food insecurity, do not benefit much from the food assistance schemes.
The report also says that the regions faced with food insecurity have been largely affected by such problems as poverty, low cereal production, low dietary energy supply, low nutritional status of the children and pregnant women and natural disasters.
Flood, cyclone and drought continue to be the main contributing factors behind the misfortunes of the poor and the malnourished lot in India, the report states. These three main forms of natural disasters affect on an average 39.3 million people every year in the country. It has been found by researchers that food insecurity affects women more than men in India. The report identifies low percentage of female literacy as the main reason behind such discrimination.
Female literacy in the country continues to be 81 per cent. Though this shows a rise from the 1992 figures of 34 per cent, the difference is still too sharp and women continue to be affected with malnutrition The report has suggested that the local needs of the areas affected with food insecurity has to be kept in mind rather than the "one-size-fits-all approach" which dominates the official mindset till date.
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