‘Sharp decline in number of hungry people’

The beleaguered UPA government, which has been under attack on several fronts, would certainly welcome a UN report on decline of hungry people in India. According to agencies, India, the world’s second biggest wheat and rice grower, saw the number of people who suffered from chronic hunger drop by 6.5 per cent to 21.38 crore during 2011-13. According to a joint report by UN food agencies, during 2008-10, as many as 22.86 crore people were undernourished in the country. The report by Food and Agriculture Organization, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and the World Food Programme said that despite the progress made worldwide, marked differences in hunger reduction persist. The report also stressed that the developing regions as a whole have made significant progress towards reaching MDG  2015 targets.