Undernourished

·         In February 2008 Gian Peitro Bordignon, country director and India representative for the World Food Programme (WFP) shared that India is home to the largest number of undernourished people in the world

·         India is home to the largest number of undernourished people in the world, and the country director of the United Nations World Food Programme (UNFP) says that malnutrition in tribal areas is a vicious cycle of underdevelopment, ignorance and unemployment that requires a multi-pronged solution.

·         Malnutrition among children below the age of three is pegged at nearly 44 percent against the sub-Saharan average of 25 percent in Africa, said

·         "India has the largest number of undernourished people in the world and one-third of the world's underweight children. There are more than 220 million people who are hungry and food-insecure in the country,"

·         The World Food Programme, which has been working in India to end hunger since 1963, has assisted over 1.5 million women and children in the country in 2007.

"In Chhattisgarh, one of the most backward tribal states in the country, nearly 50 percent of people in villages suffer from malnutrition. The food situation is pre-occupying,"

·          "The tribals in Dantewada don't drink milk because they believe cow milk is meant solely for calves, not humans. As a result, they don't milk their cattle. The tribals have limited access to fresh vegetables and fruits, and their intake of minerals and vitamins is inadequate,"

·         The Grameen Pushti Yojana was unveiled by central minister Ram Vilas Paswan Jan 18 and will take off March end. The plan looks into "all aspects of lifestyle uplift, with fortified food for children as the core development area",

·         Under the programme, WFP will distribute among children its fortified food, Indiamix, a blend of soya, vitamins and minerals, rich in micro-nutrients.

·         "It is already part of the government's Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS),"

·         Over 50,000 children and lactating mothers will benefit from the programme, which will cover health, sanitation, income generation, horticulture and setting up of grain banks in nearly 35 Chhattisgarh villages,

• The WFP has roped in sitar exponent Anoushka Shankar, daughter of maestro Ravi Shankar, as its latest celebrity advocate. The list includes heavyweights like Hollywood stars Penelope Cruz, Drew Barrymore and Collin Farrell and soccer sensations Ronaldinho and Kaka from Brazil, who have been campaigning for the reduction of hunger worldwide.