A fresh case of malnutrition death was reported from Jajpur in Odisha. A video has surfaced on the internet showing a woman sitting with her severely malnourished child, while another child is eating peanuts. Unfortunately, the malnourished child later succumbed to hunger. The mother stated that her other daughter is not able to sit or walk.

According to some media reports, this is the third death in the family, and the administration is allegedly hiding the deaths of two other children.

Children rescued, sent to Cuttack

The District Child Protection Officer, Niranjan Kar, told The Mooknayak, that only one child has died. After visiting the village, they rescued five children and sent them to Shishu Bhavan Paediatric hospital in Cuttack for treatment in accordance with the Juvenile Justice Act.

According to media reports, Banku Hembram resides in the village with his wife Tulasi Hembram and their nine children. Despite having a ration card, the family reportedly survives on water, rice, and salt as the ration card does not provide enough for the entire family.

Hunger deaths brings back haunting memories

The recent death has brought back haunting memories of 2016, when 20 children, mostly belonging to the Juanga tribe, died due to malnutrition in the Nagada Hamlet of the Sukinda block in the district. The State government faced severe criticism over the incident and took measures to address malnutrition. The government opened free kitchens and health camps to counter the menace of malnutrition in response to the incident.

A lesson not learnt

Despite the measures taken by the government, ground reports by various media houses and organizations have highlighted the gaps in the government's efforts. For instance, a report by The Hindu in 2017 stated that eight months after the death of 23 malnourished children in Nagada village of Odisha's Jajpur district, no visible progress was noticed on the food security front. Social activists who visited the remote tribal habitats alleged that the government had not taken sufficient action to address the issue.

Celebrating Poshan Pakhwada

The recent death is particularly concerning as it comes at a time when the union government has launched Poshan Pakhwada from 20th March to 3rd April, with the theme "Nutrition for All: Together Towards a Healthy India." It is noteworthy that the Central Government had launched the POSHAN Abhiyaan on 8th March 2018 to combat the scourge of malnutrition and make India malnutrition-free by 2022. The Poshan Pakhwada is an initiative aimed at encouraging people's participation in improving nutritional outcomes, and the recent death underscores the urgent need to accelerate efforts to address malnutrition in India.

Poor living conditions in a mineral rich region

Jajpur is a mineral-rich district while it's Sikunda block accounts for 96% of the total recorded deposits of chromite in the country. However, this does little to improve the development parameters in the region. A news report highlights the poor health infrastructure in the area, where a critically-injured woman had to be rushed to the nearest community health centre on a pushcart, underscoring the urgent need for improving basic infrastructure and facilities in the region.