Biggest killer of Indian kids: poverty, ignorance

from IBN Live

New Delhi: Over 6,000 children under the age of six die in our country everyday from hunger and malnutrition even though India claims to have the world's largest initiative for children under six but still ranks 94th out of 118 countries on the Global Hunger Index.

But why India's children dying of hunger when the country's food grain production is at an all time high.

Jaharunnissah is making her way to her son's grave. She lost her only son to hunger about two months ago. Four-year-old Khusbuddin was nothing but skin and bones and weighed a mere six-and-a-half kgs at the time of his death. His mother says there was never enough to eat.

"Woh kuposhan ka shikar tha usko main doodh dava poora nahin kar paati thi paise ke kaaran is vajay se uski maut ho gayi (He was malnourished. I could not give him milk and medicines due to lack of money. So he died)," Jaharunnissah laments.

Abandoned by her husband, Jaharunnissah is trying to stitch her life together. She has a daughter and an ailing mother to take care of but after an entire day's work of embroidering sarees she is paid a meager Rs 10-15. The poverty is just a constant reminder of the son she lost.

"Aaj agar mere bachhe ka ilaaj ho jaata to mera bachha bach jaata is baat ka mujhe dard rehta hain ki paise na hone ke kaaran aaj maine apne bachhe ko kho diya (I had money my son would have got the treatment and he would have been still alive. I feel very sad that I lost my son)," Jaharunnissah, trying to control her tears, says.

A few kilometers away, in another village near Varanasi, six-year-old Shamim is also battling malnutrition. Unlike other kids his age, he is neither playful nor talkative.

He has the symbolic bloated belly (Kwashiorkor) and a weak immune system that has led to further problems.

"Isko TB aur gurde mein kharabi hai. Haath per fool jata hai, saas phul jata hai (He is suffering from TB and his liver is also damaged. His hands and feet are swollen and he also complains of breathlessness)," Zohra, Shamim's mother, says.

Shamim's father Khursheed is a skilled handloom weaver but with the handloom industry in decline, he has been reduced to a casual laborer. Embroidering sarees is just not enough to make ends meet.

"Din bhar riyaz karenge toh 50 rupaye mil jaata hai usske upar nahi milta. aur ghar mein kharcha hai 150 ka toh usske baad karja hota hai, bhookmari hota hai, yehi saab hota hai, dawa nahi mil sakta hai, pehenne ko kapda nahi milta hai(We toil the entire day and get Rs 50 but our expenses are Rs 150 per day. So we have to take loan. Even after that we face hunger and cannot buy medicines. We don't even have proper cloths)," Khursheed says,

Zohra is aware that her son is malnourished and needs special care. But there's little she can do to follow the doctor's orders.

"Bataya hai machli hai, anda hai, dudh hai, yeh sab usko khilayen. Yeh sab toh hai hi nahi toh kaha se khilaye, roti toh hai hi nahi toh yeh sab kaha se laate (We have been advised to give him fish, egg and milk, But we can't buy these food items. We don't even have chapatis so how can we get such expensive food)," Zohra says.

Millions like Shamim fight hunger everyday. There has been almost no change in the country's malnutrition rates over the last decade.

The second National Family Health Survey conducted in 1998-1999 showed that 47 per cent children were undernourished.

And in 2005-06, the third National Family Health Survey shows pretty much the same results at 46 per cent.

Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh is one district where about 60 per cent children are malnourished. In the last nine months, in Talbahat block alone, 183 cases were reported, out of which 116 were severe.

Local doctors say the biggest challenge is convincing parents that their children are undernourished.

"Pata hi nai hai unko. Yahan aake unko samjhaya jata hai ki bachcha bahut hi zyada weak hai. Apko yahan treatment dene ki zaroorat hai. Admit kijiye. Bahut convince karke unhen yahan admit karna padta hai (They are not at all aware that there children are malnourished. We have to convince them to admit their children and start the treatment)." Shilpi Sahariya, a Nutrition Counselor at a Community Health Centre, says.

Hargovind is bringing up his three children all by himself. He lost his wife Sudha, to kidney failure.

After their fourth child, Sudha had become extremely weak and anemic. Soon after she died, their youngest child, Anil was also fighting to survive.

"Anil teen saal ka bachha tha hamare yahana aur 5.8kg weight tha uska Grade 4 malnourished tha saath mein infection bhi thi acute gastritis tha jiski vajah se jo bhi khana dete the usko digest nahin ho paata tha (Anil was three-year-old and weighed just 5.8 kgs. He was Grade 4 malnourished and was also suffering from acute gastritis and so could not digest anything)," Shilpi explains.

"Agar maa na marti toh bachcha bhi nahin mar sakat. Matlab matai toh matai hoti hai, matai paal leti hai, baap nahin paal pata hai. Baap kahe nahin paal paata hai ki dekho agar ghar baithe toh bachchon ko ka khilaye? Aur bhi teen bachcha hai. Unko kya khilaye? (If his mother had not died he too would have not died. A mother can bring up a child but not a father. If the father sits at home and looks after the children how can he earn and feed them? I have three more children)," Hargovind says.

Three-year-old Anil was one of the 2 million children that die of hunger in our country every year. His family didn't even realize he was malnourished until he fell sick and was taken to the hospital.

In fact most rural families are unaware of the symptoms of malnutrition and by the time doctors convince them of treatment, sometimes it's just too late.

And at other times, there are simply no medical facilities. Primary Health Centres (PHC) in many places are understaffed and almost non-functional.

"PHC mein rehne ke liye doctors ko staff milna chahiye, ward boy hona chahiye, sweeper hona chahiye, nurses honi chahiye kuch bhi nahin hain doctors ko field visit ke liye vehicle hona chahiye main yahan pe apna personal vehicle use karta hoon yeh field mein jaana ho to sochta hoon ki petrol kharch bhi milega ki nahin (In a PHC there should be adequate staff. A ward boy, sweeper, and nurse should be there for a doctor to work properly. Here there is no vehicle for field visit. I use my personal vehicle for it and have to think if I would be reimbursed the petrol bill or not), " a doctor at Primary Health Centre in Hingora, who didn't wished to be identified, reveals.

Doctors from reputed institutes don't often choose to work in such centres and those who do are soon de-motivated.

"Paanch mahine mujhe tankha nahin mili without salary paanch mahine se main kaise yahan kaam kar raha hoon kaise ghar se arrange kar raha hoon paise yeh bhi bahut problem hain (I have not received my salary for the past five months. For the last five months I have been arranging money from my home but that is also getting very difficult now)," he says.

"Jab mujhe kuch nahin mil raha hain main yahan dhoop mein baitha rehta hoon light nahin hain hospital ke andar definitely mera chodhne ka man karega finally phir kya hoga bina doctor ke ya phir kisi ko attach karenge ek din do din ke liye patient pareshaan hoga. Final to jo patient hain garib aadmi hain usko face karna hoga (I am not getting the salary but still I come and sit under the sun. There is no electricity connection in the hospital. So definitely I would want to leave the job. After that a temporary appointment for a few days will be made. But finally it will the poor patient who will have to face the consequences)," he says.

Abject poverty, lack of basic health care facilities and poor health of rural women are all killing India's children. The country has consistently let down children like Shamim and today our malnutrition rates are even worse than Sub Saharan Africa.