Cong targets Modi govt as India falls to 111th rank in Global Hunger Index

New Delhi: The Congress on Friday targeted the Modi government after India slipped to 111th rank in the Global Hunger Index (GHI), asking whether 74 per cent of Indians are not able to afford a healthy diet due to backbreaking price rise.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge cited data from the National Health and Family Survey 2019-2021 and Indian experts to say that 57 per cent of our women, aged between 15 and 49 years, are anaemic.

‘The Modi government is allergic to any critical Global data, but even Indian data says that our people are going hungry. The Modi government can deny that India’s rank in the Global Hunger Index slipped from 107th out of 121 countries in 2022 to 111th out of 125 countries in 2023.’

‘But would they deny the following -- Is it not true that 35.5 per cent of children under the age of five are stunted? Which means their height has not grown with their age. Is it not a fact that 19.3 per cent of children in India are wasted? Which means they weigh less than the national average for their height. Is it incorrect that 57 per cent of our women, aged between 15 and 49 years, are anaemic,’ he asked in a post on X.

‘Is it untrue that in Modi government’s Budget 2023-24, food subsidy saw an astounding decrease of 31.28 per cent - that is, one-third of its funds were slashed? Is it not a fact that 74 per cent of Indians were not able to afford a healthy diet, due to backbreaking, food-snatching, price rise imposed by the BJP,’ Kharge further asked.

The Congress chief said they are putting out the Government Of India numbers by the National Health and Family Survey [NFHS-5] 2019-2021 and Indian experts.

‘It is another story that even the Global Hunger Index, which is scrutinised by experts is based on food balance sheets reported by us - India and is even used for UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but the Modi government now does not accept it,’ he said.