Close X
Sunday, November 24, 2024
ADVT 
India

2023 Global Hunger Index: India ranks 111; govt calls report 'flawed'

Darpan News Desk IANS, 12 Oct, 2023 04:51 PM
  • 2023 Global Hunger Index: India ranks 111; govt calls report 'flawed'

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) India has ranked 111th out of the 125 countries on the 2023 Global Hunger Index (GHI), slipping four places since last year. However, the government has rejected the report calling it "flawed" and "erroneous".

"With a score of 28.7 in the 2023 Global Hunger Index, India has a level of hunger that is serious," said the global report released on Thursday by Concern Worldwide and Welt Hunger Hilfe, Non-Government Organisations from Ireland and Germany respectively.

In 2022, India ranked 107 out of the 125 countries.

The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, in a statement, refuted the claims and said that the index "continues to be a flawed measure of ‘Hunger’ and does not reflect India’s true position". 

The GHI report ranked Pakistan at 102, Bangladesh at 81, Nepal at 69 and Sri Lanka at 60. South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa were the regions with the highest hunger levels.

"The index is an erroneous measure of hunger and suffers from serious methodological issues. Three out of the four indicators used for calculation of the index are related to the health of children and cannot be representative of the entire population," the ministry said.

"The fourth and most important indicator ‘Proportion of Undernourished (PoU) population’ is based on an opinion poll conducted on a very small sample size of 3,000," it added.

Meanwhile, the report also counted India with the world’s highest child wasting rate of 18.7 per cent, indicating acute undernutrition.

The rate of undernourishment in India stood at 16.6 per cent and under-five mortality at 3.1 per cent.

The report also said that the prevalence of anaemia in women aged between 15 and 24 years stood at 58.1 per cent

"Two other indicators, namely, Stunting and Wasting are outcomes of complex interactions of various other factors like sanitation, genetics, environment and utilisation of food intake apart from hunger which is taken as the causative/outcome factor for stunting and wasting in the GHI," the ministry said.

It noted that there is hardly any evidence that the fourth indicator, namely, child mortality is an outcome of hunger.

The ministry said that since April 2023, the measurement data of children under five years uploaded on the Poshan Tracker has consistently increased - from 6.34 crore in April 2023 to 7.24 crore in September 2023.

"The percentage of child wasting, as seen on the Poshan Tracker, has been consistently below 7.2 per cent, month-on-month, as compared to the value of 18.7 per cent used for child wasting in the Global Hunger Index 2023," the ministry said in the statement.

MORE India ARTICLES

Punjab Police bust cross-border smuggling racket, 6 kg heroin seized

Punjab Police bust cross-border smuggling racket, 6 kg heroin seized
The accused has been identified as Shinder Singh, a resident of Jalandhar. He’s a habitual drug smuggler and has already been facing two criminal cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Punjab Police bust cross-border smuggling racket, 6 kg heroin seized

Punjab Police bust cross-border smuggling racket, 6 kg heroin seized

Punjab Police bust cross-border smuggling racket, 6 kg heroin seized
The accused has been identified as Shinder Singh, a resident of Jalandhar. He’s a habitual drug smuggler and has already been facing two criminal cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Punjab Police bust cross-border smuggling racket, 6 kg heroin seized

G20’s commitment to green and sustainable growth: A milestone for environmental prosperity

G20’s commitment to green and sustainable growth: A milestone for environmental prosperity
The two-day G20 policy workshop on the Green and Sustainable Growth Agenda for the Global Economy, held in New Delhi, marked a pivotal moment in environmental progress. It was organised by NITI Aayog, in collaboration with IDRC and GDN, the workshop brought together over 40 global experts from diverse fields.

G20’s commitment to green and sustainable growth: A milestone for environmental prosperity

Int'l arms trafficking network 'used' by Lawrence Bishnoi gang busted, 3 arrested

Int'l arms trafficking network 'used' by Lawrence Bishnoi gang busted, 3 arrested
The Special cell of Delhi Police has recovered 12 semi-automatic pistols, including Zigana, Beretta, and Slovakian pistols, Nepal currency, a SIM card from Nepal, and a specialised iron box used for trafficking guns from the possession of the accused.  

Int'l arms trafficking network 'used' by Lawrence Bishnoi gang busted, 3 arrested

Punjab CM hands over cheques to 25,000 beneficiaries for construction of houses

Punjab CM hands over cheques to 25,000 beneficiaries for construction of houses
Addressing the gathering at the state-level function after handing over the cheques, he said the state government is duty bound to ensure well-being of every strata of society, especially of the weaker and underprivileged sections.

Punjab CM hands over cheques to 25,000 beneficiaries for construction of houses

Vehicle thieves gang busted, 25 stolen luxury cars worth over Rs 13 cr seized

Vehicle thieves gang busted, 25 stolen luxury cars worth over Rs 13 cr seized
Police have also recovered 16 tampered engines, eight fake number plates, and six forged registration certificates from the possession of the accused during multiple raids in various parts of Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, spanning over the last two and half months.    

Vehicle thieves gang busted, 25 stolen luxury cars worth over Rs 13 cr seized