New Delhi: More than a third of children under the age of five enrolled in anganwadis across India are found to have stunted, the government told the Rajya Sabha. In a written reply to a question in the Upper House, Minister of State for Women and Child Development Savitri Thakur said that 7.54 crore children up to the age of five years are registered in Anganwadis and registered on Nutrition Tracker.
What causes dwarfism in children?
He said that out of these 7.31 crore children were measured for growth parameters and the findings showed that 38.9 per cent children are stunted, 17 per cent children are underweight and 5.2 per cent children are stunted. He explained that stunting, wasting and underweight are all forms of malnutrition, caused by an imbalance in a person’s energy or nutrient intake. In 2021, out of an estimated 16.1 crore population of children up to six years of age, 8.82 crore children are enrolled in Anganwadis.
37% of children are stunted, 17% are underweight
According to the ministry’s response issued on Thursday, measurements of 8.55 crore children in this group show that 37 percent are stunted, while 17 percent are underweight. The Ministry of Women and Child Development’s Nutrition Tracker is a digital platform that aims to monitor nutrition outcomes and monitor service delivery at Anganwadi centres. If a child’s height is below the recommended level for his age, he is considered stunted. A child whose weight is below the recommended level for his height is considered wasted, while a child whose weight is below the recommended level for his age is considered underweight. (with language inputs)
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