India 100th on global hunger index, trails North Korea, Bangladesh

[Proactive_]

India has a “serious” hunger problem and ranks 100th out of 119 countries on the global hunger index — behind North Korea, Bangladesh and Iraq but ahead of Pakistan, according to a report.

The country’s serious hunger level is driven by high child malnutrition and underlines need for stronger commitment to the social sector, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) said in its report.

India stood at 97th position in last year’s rankings.

“India is ranked 100th out of 119 countries, and has the third highest score in all of Asia — only Afghanistan and Pakistan are ranked worse,” IFPRI said in a statement.

“At 31.4, India’s 2017 GHI (Global Hunger Index) score is at the high end of the ‘serious’ category, and is one of the main factors pushing South Asia to the category of worst performing region on the GHI this year, followed closely by Africa South of the Sahara,” it added.

As per the report, India ranks below many of its neighbouring countries such as China (29th rank), Nepal (72), Myanmar (77), Sri Lank (84) and Bangladesh (88). It is ahead of Pakistan (106) and Afghanistan (107).

North Korea ranks 93rd while Iraq is at 78th position.

The GHI, now in its 12th year, ranks countries based on four key indicators — undernourishment, child mortality, child wasting and child stunting.

The report ranked 119 countries in the developing world, nearly half of which have ‘extremely alarming,’ ‘alarming’ or ’serious’ hunger levels.

“India’s high ranking on the Global Hunger Index [GHI] again this year brings to the fore the disturbing reality of the country’s stubbornly high proportions of malnourished children,” the statement said.

IFPRI pointed out that more than one-fifth of Indian children under five weigh too little for their height and over a third are too short for their age.

“Even with the massive scale up of national nutrition-focused programmes in India, drought and structural deficiencies have left large number of poor in India at risk of malnourishment in 2017,” said P.K. Joshi, IFPRI Director for South Asia.

However, he said that the on-going efforts are expected to make significant changes in improving the existing situation.

Mr. Joshi appreciated that India has developed and launched an action plan on ‘undernourishment free India’ by 2022. The plan shows stronger commitment and greater investments in tackling malnutrition in the coming years.

“As of 2015-16, more than a fifth [21%] of children in India suffer from wasting [low weight for height] — up from 20% in 2005-2006,” IFPRI said.

Only three other countries in this year’s GHI — Djibouti, Sri Lanka and South Sudan — show child wasting above 20%. India’s child wasting rate has not shown any substantial improvement over the past 25 years.

However, India has made considerable improvement in reducing its child stunting rate, down 29% since 2000, but even that progress leaves India with a relatively high stunting rate of 38.4.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...ls-north-korea-bangladesh/article19846437.ece

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A great time to relive this gem from our esteemed Prime Minister, who was then the Chief Minister of Gujarat :

"Gujarat's malnutrition due to figure-conscious girls" - Narendra Modi (2012)

Dire situation indeed.

 

[MenInG]

India chooses not to feed its people - they have no shortage of money.

Putting an object into space a bigger objective than putting food in the hungry's mouth.

This is not a Indian problem - Pakistan is the same.

 

[karthikc]

India has a “serious” hunger problem and ranks 100th out of 119 countries on the global hunger index — behind North Korea, Bangladesh and Iraq but ahead of Pakistan, according to a report.

The country’s serious hunger level is driven by high child malnutrition and underlines need for stronger commitment to the social sector, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) said in its report.

India stood at 97th position in last year’s rankings.

“India is ranked 100th out of 119 countries, and has the third highest score in all of Asia — only Afghanistan and Pakistan are ranked worse,” IFPRI said in a statement.

“At 31.4, India’s 2017 GHI (Global Hunger Index) score is at the high end of the ‘serious’ category, and is one of the main factors pushing South Asia to the category of worst performing region on the GHI this year, followed closely by Africa South of the Sahara,” it added.

As per the report, India ranks below many of its neighbouring countries such as China (29th rank), Nepal (72), Myanmar (77), Sri Lank (84) and Bangladesh (88). It is ahead of Pakistan (106) and Afghanistan (107).

North Korea ranks 93rd while Iraq is at 78th position.

The GHI, now in its 12th year, ranks countries based on four key indicators — undernourishment, child mortality, child wasting and child stunting.

The report ranked 119 countries in the developing world, nearly half of which have ‘extremely alarming,’ ‘alarming’ or ’serious’ hunger levels.

“India’s high ranking on the Global Hunger Index [GHI] again this year brings to the fore the disturbing reality of the country’s stubbornly high proportions of malnourished children,” the statement said.

IFPRI pointed out that more than one-fifth of Indian children under five weigh too little for their height and over a third are too short for their age.

“Even with the massive scale up of national nutrition-focused programmes in India, drought and structural deficiencies have left large number of poor in India at risk of malnourishment in 2017,” said P.K. Joshi, IFPRI Director for South Asia.

However, he said that the on-going efforts are expected to make significant changes in improving the existing situation.

Mr. Joshi appreciated that India has developed and launched an action plan on ‘undernourishment free India’ by 2022. The plan shows stronger commitment and greater investments in tackling malnutrition in the coming years.

“As of 2015-16, more than a fifth [21%] of children in India suffer from wasting [low weight for height] — up from 20% in 2005-2006,” IFPRI said.

Only three other countries in this year’s GHI — Djibouti, Sri Lanka and South Sudan — show child wasting above 20%. India’s child wasting rate has not shown any substantial improvement over the past 25 years.

However, India has made considerable improvement in reducing its child stunting rate, down 29% since 2000, but even that progress leaves India with a relatively high stunting rate of 38.4.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A great time to relive this gem from our esteemed Prime Minister, who was then the Chief Minister of Gujarat :

"Gujarat's malnutrition due to figure-conscious girls" - Narendra Modi (2012)

Dire situation indeed.

LOL..Then what about ManMohan Singh government which said 5 rupees per day is enough to survive in India

 

[ToeCrusher2]

India chooses not to feed its people - they have no shortage of money.

India runs the world's largest food subsidy scheme which covers 70% of the population. We provide grains through public distribution system at rates of 1 rupee per kg to the poor. We spend enough money to feed our people, and we have enough money to put an object into space also

 

[ToeCrusher2]

India runs the world's largest food subsidy scheme which covers 70% of the population. We provide grains through public distribution system at rates of 1 rupee per kg to the poor. We spend enough money to feed our people, and we have enough money to put an object into space also

To add:-
India speeds 21 billion us dollars every year on its food security programme

 

[Madplayer]

If India and Pakistan spent less on defence and more on people, this wouldnt have been the case. Only the common man suffers. Sad state of affairs is that many of the common men are okay with these expenditures.

 

[cricketjoshila]

India chooses not to feed its people - they have no shortage of money.

Putting an object into space a bigger objective than putting food in the hungry's mouth.

This is not a Indian problem - Pakistan is the same.

The distribution system is crap and corrupt.In India 1000s of tons of grains go waste.I am sure the case is same in Pakistan.

 

[Proactive_]

India runs the world's largest food subsidy scheme which covers 70% of the population. We provide grains through public distribution system at rates of 1 rupee per kg to the poor. We spend enough money to feed our people, and we have enough money to put an object into space also

Yes, that's why the Supreme Court has again and again rebuked the Governments on the rotting food grains in Godowns.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...upreme-Court-tells-Centre/article16129362.ece

21 Billion dollars sounds all fine and dandy but the fact is that the the food just isn't reaching it's beneficiaries, primarily due to corruption, irrespective of the Government at the center. India has no framework to work on the so called "Public distribution system" programme.

 

[CricketCartoons]

If India and Pakistan spent less on defence and more on people, this wouldnt have been the case. Only the common man suffers. Sad state of affairs is that many of the common men are okay with these expenditures.

This is false binary. Money should be spent both on defence and welfare. No either -or, especially when there is history of wars. The PDS system in India is corrupt. The distribution centers are supposed to be open whole month, but they open for 6-7 days. When you tell them that you will complain, they say go and complain. Where do they get some arrogance from? Obviously the food inspectors are also involved in the corruption. This is the corruption that is neither raised by media nor the educated intellectual people who post online, and has been going unchecked..with food meant for poor is being sold off. Another issue is storage..and a lot of food grain is wasted by rodents..thousands of crores of worth food. No point spending more money if corruption and supply chain management is not improved.

 

[JaDed]

Read the news yesterday and what is sad is we moved from 97th to 100th,so in a logic we are regressing,respect of China 29th ,democracy doesn't matter is what China has clearly proved.

PDS corruption is known for years,but hardly any government is able to get rid of it,don't think it will be possible even by 2022,but if power is achieved then surely this problem will also go away.

 

[Proactive_]

More on this:

Global Hunger Index: India down 45 ranks since 2014, situation 'serious'

India has a ‘serious’ hunger problem at hand, with the country slipping in ranking to 100th among 119 countries on the Global Hunger Index, 2017. This is three notches behind last year’s rank of 97th – and behind the likes of North Korea, Bangladesh, and Iraq, even if ahead of Pakistan.

Over a three-year duration, the country has seen a slide of 45 positions from 55th in 2014. The index shows that more than a fifth of Indian children under the age of five weigh too little for their height and a third are too short for their age.


At 31.4, India’s 2017 GHI score is at the high end of the “serious” category, and one of the main factors pushing South Asia to the category of the worst-performing region on the index this year. The region is followed closely by Africa South of the Sahara. India is the third-worst in all of Asia — better only than Afghanistan and Pakistan -- according to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), which prepared the report.

Of the 19 South, East, and Southeast Asian countries ranked in the report, Timor-Leste, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and North Korea have the worst Global Hunger Index scores in Asia.

Worldwide, scores of the 119 countries in the report vary widely. A score of 9.9 or lower denotes low hunger; while scores between 35.0 and 49.9 denote alarming hunger, and a score of 20-34.9 means ‘serious’ problem of hunger.

“With a GHI score that is near the high end of the serious category, it is obvious that a high GDP growth rate alone is no guarantee of food and nutrition security for India’s vast majority. Inequality in all its forms must be addressed now if we are to meet SDG 2 of Zero Hunger for everyone by 2030,” says Nivedita Varshneya, Welthungerhilfe Country Director India.

P K Joshi, IFPRI director for South Asia, says even with the massive scale-up of national nutrition-focused programmes in India, drought and structural deficiencies have left a large number of poor in the country at the risk of malnourishment in 2017.

As of 2015-16, more than a fifth (21 per cent) of children in India suffered from wasting (low weight for height) — up from 20 per cent in 2005-2006. Only three other countries in this year’s GHI — Djibouti, Sri Lanka, and South Sudan — showed child wasting above 20 per cent. India’s child wasting rate has not shown any substantial improvement in the past 25 years.

By comparison, the country has made a considerable improvement in reducing its child stunting rate, down 29 per cent since 2000. But despite that progress, India has a considerably high stunting rate of 38.4.

Globally, the Central African Republic has the worst score (reflecting the highest hunger level) of any country ranked in the report, and is the sole country in the Index’s “extremely alarming” category.

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Down 45 places since the NDA came into power, so it's not just "moved from 97th to 100th" as some trolls who got no knowledge about their own country would tell you.

 

[big_gamer007]

No one cares about the poor, corruption in PDS is well known but no one bothers about it..

 

[big_gamer007]

LOL..Then what about ManMohan Singh government which said 5 rupees per day is enough to survive in India

That's the problem with people of our country, Manmohan Singh government s the past people have thrown them out o power it's the right of any Indian to criticise the lack of work being done by current government.. Why bring Manmohan Singh's government here to justify BJP's lack of focus on this major issue?

 

[Hornbill]

No one cares about the poor, corruption in PDS is well known but no one bothers about it..

Low quality food materials are being supplied through PDS, here in kerala daily wagers even don't buy certain products due to bad quality but they are well paid so they can opt for better products

 

[sshakir411]

From what I've learned through my personal experience of volunteering at Food Banks and Food Drive's here in the US is...there are a lot of support programs by government for the families in need but usually the people either don't know about these programs or the interference of non-profits/other organizations who act as the middle-men causes issues in execution and getting the food/subsidies out. The US despite having numerous programs at all levels fails to feed the poor.

 

[troodon]

India will lead in every category when it comes to worst things in the world.

1.3 billion people and growing. Its a ticking time bomb. You cannot feed all these people. We just do not have enough resources and infrastructure to implement anything.

Its all okay. Keep having more and more babies. Its the only thing a man can do when he is jobless and broke.

 

[troodon]

No one cares about the poor, corruption in PDS is well known but no one bothers about it..

Poor will always be there. They have been there even when India was known as the Golden bird some centuries ago. They will be there in the future too.

Its about the number of poor people in the country. Even if 30% of the people are dirt poor, in a country like India, that amounts to almost 40 crore people. You are not going to feed them all. Even if we had a Western style infrastructure, you will still not be able to feed them. Land is limited. Resources are limited.

Everyone knows that the situation is hopeless. But politicians continue to make promises to poor people.

 

[troodon]

Just as an example, I see many many poor people in US too. The greatest country in the world has thousands of poor people asking for money at every street corner in all cities. But their numbers are small and manageable. They do not procreate like there is no tomorrow like Indians do.

Its shameful that we let our population cross 1 billion. I remember our population was 85 crores back in 90's. Our teacher used to say that India will face terrible problems if it crosses 1 billion. Now we have 130 crore people

All the development we have achieved will look hollow and useless if the population demon is not controlled. This is the single biggest issue that India is facing. Not Pakistan, not Western Culture.

 

[big_gamer007]

Poor will always be there. They have been there even when India was known as the Golden bird some centuries ago. They will be there in the future too.

Its about the number of poor people in the country. Even if 30% of the people are dirt poor, in a country like India, that amounts to almost 40 crore people. You are not going to feed them all. Even if we had a Western style infrastructure, you will still not be able to feed them. Land is limited. Resources are limited.

Everyone knows that the situation is hopeless. But politicians continue to make promises to poor people.

Not really if corruption can be stopped in PDS then at least the number of people who sleep without food or malnourished kids can reduce significantly.. Of course poor will still be there and will be played for by politicians for vote bank politics but politicians use everyone even the rich for vote bank politics.. So that's a different thing altogether..

 

[Dios]

Why is it a big deal that Bangladesh is ahead of India that it needs to be highlighted. Bangladesh is ahead of India in many social and development indicators. Nepal, the poorest country in the region (excluding Afghanistan), is leading the way. Just shows how GDP per capita is not the be all and end all.

 

[Hornbill]

Why is it a big deal that Bangladesh is ahead of India that it needs to be highlighted. Bangladesh is ahead of India in many social and development indicators. Nepal, the poorest country in the region (excluding Afghanistan), is leading the way. Just shows how GDP per capita is not the be all and end all.

I watched a video of an indian hitchhiker who just traveled few kilometers outside your capital https://youtu.be/qilgEyBIBis tbh there is really nothing to boast about.

 

[Buffet]

More on this:

Global Hunger Index: India down 45 ranks since 2014, situation 'serious'

India has a ‘serious’ hunger problem at hand, with the country slipping in ranking to 100th among 119 countries on the Global Hunger Index, 2017. This is three notches behind last year’s rank of 97th – and behind the likes of North Korea, Bangladesh, and Iraq, even if ahead of Pakistan.

Over a three-year duration, the country has seen a slide of 45 positions from 55th in 2014. The index shows that more than a fifth of Indian children under the age of five weigh too little for their height and a third are too short for their age.


At 31.4, India’s 2017 GHI score is at the high end of the “serious” category, and one of the main factors pushing South Asia to the category of the worst-performing region on the index this year. The region is followed closely by Africa South of the Sahara. India is the third-worst in all of Asia — better only than Afghanistan and Pakistan -- according to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), which prepared the report.

Of the 19 South, East, and Southeast Asian countries ranked in the report, Timor-Leste, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and North Korea have the worst Global Hunger Index scores in Asia.

Worldwide, scores of the 119 countries in the report vary widely. A score of 9.9 or lower denotes low hunger; while scores between 35.0 and 49.9 denote alarming hunger, and a score of 20-34.9 means ‘serious’ problem of hunger.

“With a GHI score that is near the high end of the serious category, it is obvious that a high GDP growth rate alone is no guarantee of food and nutrition security for India’s vast majority. Inequality in all its forms must be addressed now if we are to meet SDG 2 of Zero Hunger for everyone by 2030,” says Nivedita Varshneya, Welthungerhilfe Country Director India.

P K Joshi, IFPRI director for South Asia, says even with the massive scale-up of national nutrition-focused programmes in India, drought and structural deficiencies have left a large number of poor in the country at the risk of malnourishment in 2017.

As of 2015-16, more than a fifth (21 per cent) of children in India suffered from wasting (low weight for height) — up from 20 per cent in 2005-2006. Only three other countries in this year’s GHI — Djibouti, Sri Lanka, and South Sudan — showed child wasting above 20 per cent. India’s child wasting rate has not shown any substantial improvement in the past 25 years.

By comparison, the country has made a considerable improvement in reducing its child stunting rate, down 29 per cent since 2000. But despite that progress, India has a considerably high stunting rate of 38.4.

Globally, the Central African Republic has the worst score (reflecting the highest hunger level) of any country ranked in the report, and is the sole country in the Index’s “extremely alarming” category.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Down 45 places since the NDA came into power, so it's not just "moved from 97th to 100th" as some trolls who got no knowledge about their own country would tell you.

If my memory serves me right then 2014 index was for around 70 countries. Current one has 120 countries. 55 out of 70 is not much different than 100 out of 120.

Anyway, globally we produce enough food to not have anyone hungry. It's shame that anyone goes hungry due to logistics or any other reasons.

 

[Bewal Express]

Disgraceful rankings for Ind and Pakistan.

 

[Sidilicious]

India chooses not to feed its people - they have no shortage of money.

Putting an object into space a bigger objective than putting food in the hungry's mouth.

This is not a Indian problem - Pakistan is the same.

Don't think you have a degree in economics or have a basic understanding of economics.

ISRO actually makes money from its ventures, and it adds heavily to the Indian economy shoring our coffers. Unfortunately, its the lack in efficiency in the Indian agriculture industry (especially the distribution) and the corruption which is responsible for this problem.

If any country invests in high tech products and technology, it actually helps the nation in revenue and economy. Believing that the money spent on the space program could have been used for could have been used to feed the hungry is 18th century economics and has been proven that it doesn't work.

Though, I agree that the money on our defence budget could have been invested in human development and eliminating poverty than in defence.

 

[troodon]

Disgraceful rankings for Ind and Pakistan.

Story of India/Pakistan.
Haath Paire mein dum nahi, hum kisise kum nahi!!

 

[Yossarian]

India has a “serious” hunger problem and ranks 100th out of 119 countries on the global hunger index — behind North Korea, Bangladesh and Iraq but ahead of Pakistan, according to a report.

"There's lies, damned lies, and statistics"

"If your feet are in the fridge and your head is in the oven, then on average your temperature is fine"

What is the purpose of rankings and league tables such as these? "Oh look, we're one place higher than them when last year they were one place higher than us.......Yipeee!"

 

[AlizeeFan]

India chooses not to feed its people - they have no shortage of money.

Putting an object into space a bigger objective than putting food in the hungry's mouth.

This is not a Indian problem - Pakistan is the same.

How does money solve this issue, when there is no shortage of food either?

Approx 30% of fresh produce is wasted. Farmers burn crops, foodgrains gets spoiled at storage. Then you have middlemen and people who don't want market to have lower prices.

Spending money isn't issue here. Distribution and regulation is needed more than anything else. You can't fix corruption, vested interest, greed and other such issues by injecting money in the system.

 

[AlizeeFan]

TACKLING FOOD WASTAGE IN INDIA

Although the Government has taken steps to rein in food wastage, but given the depth of the problem, they are not up to the mark. The focus must be on food processing technologies that are both advanced and affordable

Food wastage is fast assuming serious dimensions. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a staggering 1.3 billion tonnes of food is being wasted annually. The FAO report further states that one-third of the total global food production is wasted, costing the world economy about $750 billion or Rs47 lakh crore. This alarming increase in food wastage is generating nearly 3.3 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, thereby severely impacting the environment. The wastage of rice in particular has serious ramifications for the environment as decaying rice releases methane, a potent global warming gas.

Food wastage is an issue that has a global scale. According to a report by the National Resources Defence Council (NRDC), 40 per cent of the food goes uneaten in the US, whereas in Asia, India and China cause a loss 1.3 billion tonnes of food wastage every year. In terms of overall food waste — agricultural produce, poultry and milk — India ranks seventh, with the Russian Federation at the top of the list.

India’s lower ranking is because most of the countries ranking above it utilise much of their land in raising poultry, while a major chunk of land in India is under agriculture and this explains the highest wastage of cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables that occurs in India.

A recent study conducted by Indian Institute of Management, Kolkata, revealed that only 10 per cent of foods get cold storage facility in India, this factor, accompanied by inappropriate supply chain management, has resulted in India becoming a significant contributor towards food wastage both at pre and post harvest waste in cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables. India ranks 63 among 88 countries in Global Hunger Index with 20 crore Indians sleeping hungry on any given night, but in spite of this, nearly 21 million tonnes of wheat are wasted in India each year instead of reaching the needy.

Apart from the wastage of the food produced, the resources lost in the form of inputs during food production are also considerable. For instance, 25 per cent of fresh water, used to produce food, is ultimately wasted, even as millions of people still don’t have access to drinking water. In addition, approximately 45 per cent of India’s land is degraded primarily due to deforestation, unsustainable agricultural practices, and excessive groundwater extraction to meet the food demand.

Besides this, nearly300 million barrels of oil used to produce food is also ultimately wasted. Taking all of it into consideration, the actual worth of money per year in India from food wastage is estimated at a whopping Rs58,000 crore.

The Government has made many efforts to rein in food wastage but clearly, the depth of the problem is such that the impact of these efforts is hardly up to the mark. In order to make progress in reducing the burden of this problem, the Government needs to primarily contain the excessive wastage in transportation and improve storage facilities that are currently 50 per cent less than required. Besides this, the Government must also focus on food processing technologies that are both advanced and affordable so that food preservation practices can be encouraged thereby saving food from wastage.

India should also take a cue from global practices that are both unorthodox and innovative in order to tackle food wastage problem. For instance, France has passed unanimous legislation requiring supermarkets to either give unsold food to charity or send it to farmers for use as feed and fertiliser.

Similarly, institutions in Canada are recovering unused and unspoiled food from retailers, manufacturers, restaurants and caterers and sending them to charities, in the process delivering ingredients for over 22,000 meals daily. These powerful initiatives have made a big difference in how these countries have approached a vexing issue.

India can effectively use technology to script a new chapter in prevention of food wastage. The Government can speed up research in Nano technology with the help of which eco-friendly and healthy food preservation applications can be invented that are helpful in preserving food for longer duration and keeping farm produce fresh.

In addition to these efforts, the Government must make it mandatory for the food retailers across the country to adopt technology standards that allow incentives for the customer to purchase perishable products that are approaching their expiration dates. This will help reduce food wastage, maximises grocery retailer revenue, and effectively reduces the global carbon footprint.

The World Economic Forum warns that food shortages represent one of the biggest risks to global stability over the next decade as countries are increasingly affected by climate change. Even though the world produces enough food to feed twice the world’s present population, food wastage is ironically behind the billions of people who are malnourished. It is time to recognise this colossal scale of waste and take appropriate action that not only benefits humanity but the environment as well.

http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/oped/tackling-food-wastage-in-india.html

 

[MenInG]

India runs the world's largest food subsidy scheme which covers 70% of the population. We provide grains through public distribution system at rates of 1 rupee per kg to the poor. We spend enough money to feed our people, and we have enough money to put an object into space also

And you havent read post #1

 

[MenInG]

How does money solve this issue, when there is no shortage of food either?

Approx 30% of fresh produce is wasted. Farmers burn crops, foodgrains gets spoiled at storage. Then you have middlemen and people who don't want market to have lower prices.

Spending money isn't issue here. Distribution and regulation is needed more than anything else. You can't fix corruption, vested interest, greed and other such issues by injecting money in the system.

As in you cannot say we do not have money to spend in fixing the distribution system etc

 

[R0H1T]

If India and Pakistan spent less on defence and more on people, this wouldnt have been the case. Only the common man suffers. Sad state of affairs is that many of the common men are okay with these expenditures.

They are not but then you'd be ignorant to think we can afford to sit back & let another Kargil recur.

As in you cannot say we do not have money to spend in fixing the distribution system etc

It's not the money, it;s the leakages. Bribes, lack of cold storage, corruption etc.

 

[Bilal7]

We're truly blessed to be on Pakpassion talking about this instead of being one of those that are affected. Extremely sad to read things like this when on the other side, idiots with more money than brains are spending it on the most stupid things possible.

India runs the world's largest food subsidy scheme which covers 70% of the population. We provide grains through public distribution system at rates of 1 rupee per kg to the poor. We spend enough money to feed our people, and we have enough money to put an object into space also

Lolwut? Get your head out of the sand and read the article again. India is ranked 100 out of 119 countries. Your government clearly does not do a good job of feeding you.

India will lead in every category when it comes to worst things in the world.

1.3 billion people and growing. Its a ticking time bomb. You cannot feed all these people. We just do not have enough resources and infrastructure to implement anything.

Its all okay. Keep having more and more babies. Its the only thing a man can do when he is jobless and broke.

India has more than enough wealth and resources to feed every single person in their country and still have enough left over to export. More babies is not a problem.

The same is true on a global scale; people think the planet cannot sustain itself but actually, we produce enough to sustain three other planets similar to our own.

The problem is that way too many of those resources and wealth is concentrated in the greedy hands of a few. Redistrubute that wealth and you've solved 90% of the world's problems.

Don't think you have a degree in economics or have a basic understanding of economics.

ISRO actually makes money from its ventures, and it adds heavily to the Indian economy shoring our coffers. Unfortunately, its the lack in efficiency in the Indian agriculture industry (especially the distribution) and the corruption which is responsible for this problem.

If any country invests in high tech products and technology, it actually helps the nation in revenue and economy. Believing that the money spent on the space program could have been used for could have been used to feed the hungry is 18th century economics and has been proven that it doesn't work.

Though, I agree that the money on our defence budget could have been invested in human development and eliminating poverty than in defence.

Yes, but on the other hand, if you invest in these poor people today, you'll have a bigger workforce tomorrow. Economics also has a bad reputation with welfare so yes, from an economics POV, the opportunity cost of feeding these people may not be high enough to warrant India spending less money elsewhere but only a horrible monster would see so many die of starvation.

 

[ExpressPacer]

Just as an example, I see many many poor people in US too. The greatest country in the world has thousands of poor people asking for money at every street corner in all cities. But their numbers are small and manageable. They do not procreate like there is no tomorrow like Indians do.

Its shameful that we let our population cross 1 billion. I remember our population was 85 crores back in 90's. Our teacher used to say that India will face terrible problems if it crosses 1 billion. Now we have 130 crore people

All the development we have achieved will look hollow and useless if the population demon is not controlled. This is the single biggest issue that India is facing. Not Pakistan, not Western Culture.

India can still manage it because of the huge area, to some extent. Pakistan can't.

 

[AlizeeFan]

India is ranked 100 out of 119 countries. Your government clearly does not do a good job of feeding you.

Yes, govt hasn't been successful in ensuring that no one goes hungry even though country produces enough good.

The same is true on a global scale; people think the planet cannot sustain itself but actually, we produce enough to sustain three other planets similar to our own.

The problem is that way too many of those resources and wealth is concentrated in the greedy hands of a few. Redistrubute that wealth and you've solved 90% of the world's problems.

Yes, it's a problem for whole world. Our (whole human race) produces enough food to feed 7 billion people, but many remain hungry due to unavailability while those who have extra have to waste it.