Nutrition 'Takes' Healthy Strides In Jharkhand

Ranchi: Jharkhand is making notable strides in tackling malnutrition. Even though the challenges in this regard remain significant, new data and local initiatives pointed towards improvements in child health and nutrition across the state as govt-led programmes and community partnerships are showing measurable impacts.Experts also said Jharkhand’s nutrition indicators have gradually improved, and acute malnutrition has fallen from 29% in 2015-16 to 22% in 2019-21. Stunting also declined from 45.3% to 39.6% as per the National Family Health Survey - 5. Moreover, severe acute malnutrition dropped from 11.4% to 9% during the same period. However, chronic malnutrition among infants under six months remains a concern at 32%, according to the survey report.In Ranchi district, admissions to the malnutrition treatment centres (MTCs) have shown a declining trend over the past three years. A total of 723 children were admitted to MTCs in 2023-24, which reduced to 634 in 2024-25. In the current year 2025-26, 214 admissions have been recorded up to August 25.In the Bundu block of Ranchi district, the Care and Nurture, a non-profit organisation, reported a decline in malnutrition from 34.5% to 26.5% and a rise in dietary diversity from 15.8% to 48% in the last two years.

Moreover, handwashing practices improved from 46.2% to 86%, reducing diarrhoeal cases from 14.3% to 2.1%, it said.Moreover, a nutrition intervention piloted in Chaibasa has shown encouraging results with a 78% recovery rate among children suffering from severe acute malnutrition. Conducted in Chakradharpur block of West Singhbhum, the pilot project enrolled 139 children, of whom 124 completed the intervention, and 97 recovered.Social welfare department director Kiran Kumari Pasi highlighted that the project was implemented in a difficult region. “Community challenges like low milk consumption, alcoholism, child marriage and school dropouts among girls directly affect child nutrition. Our interventions are vital to address these realities,” she said.At the school level, Project Suposhan has also emerged as an innovative initiative to improve both nutrition and awareness.

Nutrition gardens have been established in 1,771 of 2,128 schools, with completion expected by December this year. These gardens grow vegetables like spinach, moringa, papaya, tomatoes and carrots for midday meals, while also serving as hands-on learning spaces where students practice farming, composting and waste recycling.To further strengthen child care, the state has approved crèche facilities in 1,000 anganwadi centres out of 38,432 such centres across Jharkhand.

These will cater to children between six months and three years, offering improved early childhood care. “Crèches are essential for child development and family support. Civil society should come forward to collaborate with the govt in this initiative,” Pasi said.Laxmi Kalundiya, an anganwadi sevika at Ukugutu in West Singhbhum district, said, “At our anganwadi centre, we provide children with fresh, hot meals and take-home rations to support their nutrition and healthy growth,”Meanwhile, experts pointed out that stunting, wasting and underweight among children were primarily caused by inadequate nutrition and health challenges.

Stunting results from chronic under-nutrition, recurrent infections, poor maternal nutrition, limited access to diverse foods, and inadequate healthcare, often influenced by poverty, low maternal education and poor child care practices. Wasting reflects acute nutritional deficiency, caused by insufficient dietary intake or illnesses like diarrhoea and respiratory infections.

Underweight combines the effects of stunting and wasting, often linked to low household socioeconomic status, poor parental nutrition and food insecurity.Moreover, overweight in children often arises from unhealthy diets, lack of physical activity, genetic factors and excessive calorie intake, highlighting the dual challenge of malnutrition in both deficit and excess forms.The state director of National Health Mission, Shashi Prakash Jha, said, “Sustained efforts in nutrition, hygiene and early childhood care are key to achieving lasting results. The state’s model of combining community-driven solutions with govt programmes is now paving the way for long-term gains in child health.”