VEDANTA KHUSHI

"KHUSHI" is an AWARENESS CAMPAIGN, launched by Vedanta Resources plc, with a focus to sensitize people towards care for the underprivileged and deprived children – their Nutrition – Education – Health and overall development. Join Khushi on facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/vedantakhushi and send motivational stories at khushi.creatinghappiness@gmail.com . LET US MAKE INDIA A CHILD MALNOURISHED FREE NATION..

Fight for the Nourishment in Under-Privileged Children

Malnutrition in India Children – A Matter of Concern

UNICEF reports say, the story of India is one of growth, gains and gaps. With an economy that is going from strength to strength, benefiting from the demographic dividend of a young and growing workforce, this largest democracy of the world is also home to the largest number of children in the world. With this growth come real gains for India’s children and women. Increased government allocations to social sector programmes in line with its commitment to inclusive growth, a progressive policy environment and slew of social protection schemes, and the strength of decentralised planning and governance through the Panchayati Raj system - all contributing to improving the lives of India’s children and women.

But with nearly half a billion children in this country, a lot more remains to be done to ensure the survival, growth and development of India’s greatest asset: its children.

Globally, more than one third of under-five deaths are attributable to under- nutrition.  About 20 per cent of children under-age five in India are wasted, 43 per cent underweight and 48 per cent stunted. In terms of numbers about 54 million children under five years in India are underweight which constitutes about 37 percent of the total underweight children in the world.

In India, 25 million children under five years are wasted and 61 million are stunted, which constitutes 31 per cent and 28 per cent of wasted and stunted children respectively in the world.

It is also now being recognized that the greatest vulnerability to nutritional deficiencies is during the period of the mothers’ pregnancy and continues until age two.

The report further says, there is a growing emphasis on the problem of stunting (measured by height for age) and anemia in the first two years of life as they not only impact child survival and growth, but also result in diminished cognitive development, school performance and physical development. This also has an adverse inter-generational impact in terms of productivity, poverty, and for women, higher risk of pregnancy-related complications and low birth-weight babies which in turn, reinforces the vicious cycle of under-nutrition.

The problem is so alarming.

We need to find our own ways to fight this problem - as a corporate, as an individual or as government. The contributions are not always counted in financial terms, helping a child's nutrition, its education, it health by taking individual interest and by sensitizing people also equally counts.

It is time we look for the future India….. It is time we get down to bring change..

"Khushi" - Partner in Creating Happiness

1 comment:

  1. We need to associate government officials to write on this blog about the policies and other inititives by the government.

    ReplyDelete