After the ‘Global Hunger Index Report’ was released on October 12 and the recent death of an 11-year-old girl due to hunger in the Simdiga district of Jharkhand, malnutrition and hunger have once again become a topic of discussion. According to the ‘Global Hunger Index’ report, which measures how many people in a country are getting what kind of food, India has been ranked 100th among 119 countries suffering from hunger. Nepal and Bangladesh are also in a better position than India.
According to this report, 21% of children under 5 years of age are malnourished in India. The weight of children under 5 years of age is very low for their height and one-third of children are short for their age. If we look at the separate statistics of boys and girls, then according to this report, 30.7% of boys and 22.7% of girls are victims of malnutrition from childhood to adolescence.
The problem of malnutrition in children has been present in India for a very long time. But now, for the last few years, a different trend of diseases is being seen in the poorer families. Despite having the same food and drink in the family, some children are underweight and some are obese.
According to the statistics of ‘Imperial College of London’ and ‘World Health Organization’, one in 50 children in India is a victim of obesity. 40 years ago, the problem of obesity in India was negligible, according to that, if we look at the current statistics, then this problem is also worth considering. Some of the causes of obesity are excessive idleness and junk food, which we are all already aware of. But in a country like India, where about 70% of the population is living on less than Rs 20 per day and where such figures of hunger are being seen, this cannot be the only reason for the increasing number of children suffering from obesity. So, we will have to look at the concrete reasons behind this. Scientists are also researching this subject.
According to a scientist named David Barker, the cause of obesity in children from poor families is malnutrition in pregnant women.
During pregnancy, a woman needs an average of 300 calories more energy than a normal person and for the proper development of the fetus, some specific elements are needed more, which can be fulfilled only by eating food in the right quantity and in the right way. But in India, due to the second-class status of women, many pregnant women get less food than a normal person. According to the National Health Survey, 2014-15, 23% of women in India are victims of malnutrition. 50% of pregnant women in the age group of 15 to 49 years are suffering from anemia. Malnutrition in pregnant women increases the rate of death during pregnancy and childbirth and the rate of miscarriage. A double whammy is seen in the children of malnourished pregnant women, which has been mentioned earlier that some children are very weak and some children are victims of obesity.
If we try to understand Barker’s theory in more detail, according to this, if the fetus does not get proper nutrition due to malnutrition in the pregnant woman, then it adapts itself to a diet of less food. The vital organs of the fetus such as the heart, brain, lungs, kidneys, etc. start working on less energy. Then after the birth of the child, these organs cannot use much energy and the food starts accumulating on the child’s body in the form of fat. In the long run, these children are at increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and other heart diseases. ‘Lifestyle’ diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, which were till now considered diseases caused by the lifestyle of the rich, which is why they were given this name, are now being seen in the poor class as well. Barker’s opinion can help us understand this too.
Barker’s opinion helps us understand one aspect of this problem, but it is not enough to understand the issue. To understand this issue in depth, we have to understand the economic, social and political system of India. Today, science and technology have reached a point where the necessary conditions for the life of every person can be fulfilled. Yet, every third hungry person in the world is an Indian. While on one hand a small population, which has private ownership of the means of production, has an abundance of facilities, on the other hand a large population, which is engaged in production, is suffering from this scourge of malnutrition, which is affecting not only the present suffering but also the future generations. It can be said that on one side there are islands of affluence and on the other side there are oceans of poverty.
According to a report, in the last 6 years about 62,000 tonnes of food grains, mainly rice and wheat, were burnt in the godowns of FCI. The quantity of food grains that were spoiled could have provided food to about 8 lakh people for a whole year. From all this it is clear that the cause of problems like malnutrition and hunger is not lack of production. Everything has been produced in abundance due to production for profit. But there is still no solution to problems like hunger in the capitalist system.
Now is the time to understand these complexities of capitalist society and resolve to create a society of equality.