High percentage of malnourished children causing concern

17 p.c. of newborns in Kalaburagi are underweight

A high percentage of malnourished children and the high number of children born underweight continues to be a major health problem in Kalaburagi, according to the Kalaburagi District Human Development Report-2014.

Common problem

The report, compiled by economist Chaya Degaonkar of Gulbarga University, provides a disturbing picture of the prevalent malnutrition and anaemia, which is common among children and women. In Chittapur taluk, 57.5 per cent of the children were reported as malnourished.

The situation was the same in all taluks with Jewargi reporting 49.74 per cent, Chincholi with 45.62 per cent, Aland taluk with 42.3 per cent, Afzalpur taluk with 37.14 per cent, Sedam taluk with 34.19 per cent and Kalaburagi with 28.88 per cent.

The report also said that nearly 17 per cent of newborns in the district were underweight.

The figures varied from 7.34 per cent in Sedam to 10.16 per cent in Kalaburagi taluks. Chincholi reported 9.51 per cent of newborn as underweight, followed by Aland with 9.10 per cent, Afzalpur with 7.67 per cent, Sedam with 7.34 per cent, Jewargi with 5.60 per cent and Chittapur with 5.14 per cent.

Poverty, gender discrimination, early marriage, high fertility rates, low female literacy rate and a lack of awareness about nutrition were some reasons for the high rate of malnutrition among children in the district, according to the findings.

The low coverage of children under the Integrated Child Development Scheme in the district was also cited as a reason for the low levels of nourishment.

The percentage of children covered under the scheme in the Anganwadi centres was 62.33 per cent.

The coverage was 48.67 per cent in Kalaburagi taluk, 55.75 per cent in Jewargi and 83 per cent in Sedam.