Malnutrition rate in Chhattisgarh down by 17% in one decade

Raipur: Chhattisgarh has registered significant progress in fight against child malnourishment as the average malnutrition rate has recorded 17 per cent decline in the last one decade, an official said Wednesday.

"With consistent efforts of the state government and public participation, there has been significant decrease in malnutrition rate," the official from Women and Child Development Department said.

According to the data collected during 'vazan tyohar' (weight festival) organised by the department, malnutrition rate in Chhattisgarh has declined to 30 per cent from 47.1 per cent registered in the National Family Health Survey 2005-06 (weight-based), he said.

This reflects a "huge decline" of 17 per cent in the last one decade in the state which has large pockets of tribal population and is affected by Naxalism, the official said.

Malnutrition is a condition that occurs due to unhealthy eating habits, lack of nutrition in diet and other reasons. To cure this government has launched several schemes.

To ensure good health of a child right from foetal stage, pregnant and lactating women are provided nutritious diet every week from Aanganwadis (care centres for kids). Women are also advised on their diet and nutritional requirement of their children, the official said.

'Vazan tyohar' is organised every year to diagnose malnutrition level in children, during which weight of all children in the state is recorded, he said.

The department has also been conducting community-based 'Nava Jatan Yojana' since 2012. Under it, over 50,000 children had been cured of malnutrition so far, he said.

For children with serious condition of malnutrition, nutrition rehab centres have been established in 62 places, including district headquarters, he said.

A 12-day 'sneh shivir' (affection camp) is organised regularly in 17 districts which have high number of kids with poor level of diet. At these camps, nearly 7,000 children have been cured of malnutrition, the official said.

In these camps, children are provided additional meal, milk and banana, among other things, at a rate of Rs 11 per head, he said.