Now Reading: Every third child stunted in Madhya Pradesh, NFHS data shows
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Every third child stunted in Madhya Pradesh, NFHS data shows
More than half the children at an Anganwadi in Burhanpur district, Madhya Pradesh, are undernourished, with the Poshan Tracker app showing six severely stunted, 33 moderately stunted, and 23 moderately underweight among…
The Story in Brief
More than half the children at an Anganwadi in Burhanpur district, Madhya Pradesh, are undernourished, with the Poshan Tracker app showing six severely stunted, 33 moderately stunted, and 23 moderately underweight among 82 kids. Data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) reveals every third child in the state is stunted, every fifth wasted, and four in ten malnourished.
The share of underweight children under five has risen from 33 to 39.7 per cent since the last survey, and wasting has climbed from 18.9 to 23.8 per cent. Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months has dropped to 56.4 per cent from 74 per cent. Nationally, 32 per cent of children under five are underweight and 85 per cent do not get an adequate diet, The Hindu reports.
The Indian Opinion
The narrative that India's nutrition mission is working hides a stark truth: Madhya Pradesh's numbers are getting worse on key measures, not better. A child inadequately fed in the first 1,000 days rarely catches up, yet public discourse fixates on calorie counts or midday meal menus. The real test is whether the Anganwadi worker's monthly weighing leads to action, not just a data point on an app. When a mother of eight feels shame admitting her count, who ensures her youngest gets more than torn roti in watery daal?
Source: frontline.thehindu.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
