Malnutrition a potent threat for tribals in Jharkhand

Tribals residing in the West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand are facing malnutrition as a grave threat to their lives. The ones suffering the most are girls who are married at a young age and become pregnant but do not get the required nutrition to keep themselves or their children healthy.

Jharkhand:It is nothing short of a nightmare that even after 20 years of the formation of Jharkhand, a large section of its people is still spending their lives in suffering.

Having facilities like education and employment are distant dreams for these people, who do not have enough food or health facilities to survive.

According to the National Family Health Survey, around two lakh children in the West Sighbhum district of Jharkhand are malnourished. The region ranks fourth in the country in this regard.

Malnutrition has, in fact, spread its tentacles deep into some areas including Saranda, Kolhan and Podaihat.

Even though Saranda, located at about 70 km from the district is the abode of the largest Sal forest in the country, has not received enough attention from authorities.

As ETV Bharat visited the tribal groups residing in the district, they discovered shocking facts about the state of malnutrition there. Most of the students under five years of age were found to have fallen prey to malnutrition.

The bigger problem being the lack of awareness among people. Most of the parents aren't aware of their children's suffering. The realisation often strikes them too late to deal with it or even save their children.

Another discovery made by ETV Bharat was that girls are married off at a very young age in these areas, mostly to men or boys without any source of income.

These girls become pregnant at a very young age but are not provided with the required nutrition, as a result of which, both the mothers and the children face a threat to their lives.

In fact, their babies are also delivered by midwives because of their inability to bear hospital expenses.

The Deputy Commissioner of Development has claimed that the government is providing a sufficient amount of rice to the Anganwadi centres in the district to cater to the needs of these malnourished children. And small units for providing the people with nutrition-rich laddoos have been installed in Chaibasa and Chakradharpur.

However, in contrast to these claims, the ground reality seems to be completely different.

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