Lok Sabha Question No. 2618 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-08-04
Subject: Malnourishment in Rural Areas
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Alok Kumar Suman

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN & CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2618

TO BE ANSWERED ON 04.08.2023

## MALNOURISHMENT IN RURAL AREAS

## 2618. DR. ALOK KUMAR SUMAN :

Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether most of the rural women, working women and girls in rural as well as urban areas are undernourished/malnourished and suffering from iron deficiency;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether working women in the country are suffering from various stress leading their life towards undernourishment;
- (d) if so, the details thereof and the measures taken in this regard; and
- (e) whether the working women in the country are getting all the facilities at the work place, if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)

(a) to (b) For estimating the number of undernutrition and Anaemia among children, girls and women in the country a nationwide periodic survey is being conducted by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare which is known as the National Family Health Survey (NFHS). As per NFHS-5 (2019-21), the prevalence of underweight (BMI less than  18.5  kg/m2) among  women  in  urban  and  rural  areas  is  13.2%  and  21.2% respectively and adolescent girls (15-19 years) is 39.7%. The prevalence of anaemia among  women in  urban  and  rural  areas  is  53.8%  and  58.5%  respectively  and adolescent girls in urban and rural areas is 56.5% and 60.2 respectively%.

(c) & (d) Long term stress upsets the homeostasis which can cause a variety of health problems such as mental disorders and enhance the risk of illness as well as agerelated  diseases.  However,  stress  is  not  the  only  cause  of  under  nutrition  among women. Under-nutrition is a complex and multi-dimensional issue, affected mainly by a number of generic factors including inadequate food consumption, inequitable food distribution, improper maternal infant and  child feeding, inequity  and  gender imbalances, poor sanitary and environmental conditions; etc.

(e) Government  is  committed  to  management  of  safety  and  health  risks  at workplaces  and  to  provide  measures  so  as  to  ensure  safe  and  healthy  working conditions for every working woman in the nation. These objectives are sought to be achieved  through  enactment  and  implementation  of  various  labour  laws,  which regulate the terms and conditions of service and employment of workers including women. Accordingly, Government of India has enacted various laws. The legislations with  special  provisions  for  women  workforce  include  The  Prohibition  of  Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013, Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, Minimum Wages Act, 1948 and Factories Act, 1948, etc.

Further,  the  Ministry  of  Women  and  Child  Development  has  launched  an Umbrella Scheme Mission Shakti for the safety, security and empowerment of women for implementation during the 15 th  Finance Commission period 2021-22 to 2025-26. The  scheme  guidelines  are  effective from  01.04.2022. The  Palna  component  has been included under Mission Shakti to provide for quality and affordable day-care facilities for the children of working women to encourage women's participation in work force. The number of crèches operational across the country is 2688 and the number of beneficiaries is 57128 as on 31.05.2023.

Under Mission Shakti, Working Women Hostel (WWH) known as Sakhi Niwas, is  a  demand  driven  centrally  sponsored  scheme,  under  which  funds  are  directly released  to  States/UTs  for  implementation  of  the  scheme.  The  scheme  aims  to promote  availability  of  safe  and  conveniently  located  accommodation  for  working women and other women pursuing higher education and training.

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