Lok Sabha Question No. 3486 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-03-21
Subject: Anemia among Women
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Dr. Nishikant Dubey, Shri Mani A, Ms. Mahua Moitra, Smt. Vijaylakshmi Devi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3486

TO BE ANSWERED ON 21.03.2025

## ANEMIA AMONG WOMEN

## 3486.  SHRI MANI A:

SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI: MS. MAHUA MOITRA: DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY:

Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:

- (a) the  number  of  women  suffering  from  anemia  and  children  affected  by malnutrition in the country especially in Jharkhand  and  particularly in Dharmapuri Parliamentary constituency in Tamil Nadu;
- (b) the details of the measures being taken by the Government to address said issues, including specific programs and initiatives launched therefor;
- (c) the number of women with anemia and malnourished children in said States, district-wise;
- (d) the  details  of  funds,  resources,  and  assistance  provided  to  said  States  to address the above issue; and
- (e) the details of the incidence of malnutrition from pregnancy to age of five during the last ten years, State-wise, year-wise?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR)

(a) to (e) Under the 15th Finance Commission, various components like Anganwadi services,  Poshan  Abhiyaan  and  Scheme  for  Adolescent  girls  (of  14-18  years  in Aspirational  Districts  and  North-Eastern  region)  have  been  subsumed  under  the umbrella  Mission  Saksham  Anganwadi  and  Poshan  2.0  (Mission  Poshan  2.0)  to address the challenge of malnutrition. It is a Centrally Sponsored mission, where the responsibility for implementation of various activities lies with the States and UTs. This mission is a universal self-selecting umbrella where there are no entry barriers for any beneficiary to register and receive services. This mission is being implemented across the country including Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu.

The objectives of Mission are as follows:

- To contribute to development of human capital in the country;
- Address challenge of malnutrition;
- Promote nutrition awareness and good eating habits for sustainable health and wellbeing

Under Mission Poshan 2.0 a new strategy has been made for reduction in malnutrition and for improved health, wellness and immunity through activities like community engagement, outreach, behavioral change, and advocacy. It focuses on Maternal Nutrition,  Infant  and  Young  Child  Feeding  Norms,  treatment  of  Severe  Acute Malnutrition  (SAM)/  Moderate  Acute  Malnutrition  (MAM)  and  wellness  through AYUSH practices  to  reduce  prevalence  of  wasting,  stunting,  anaemia  and  being underweight.

Under this mission, Supplementary Nutrition is provided to Children (6 months to 6 years),  Pregnant  Women,  Lactating  Mothers  and  Adolescent  Girls  to  beat  the intergenerational cycle of malnutrition by adopting a life cycle approach. Supplementary nutrition is provided in accordance with the nutrition norms contained in Schedule-II of the National Food Security Act. These norms have been revised in January  2023.  The  old  norms  were  largely  calorie-specific;  however,  the  revised norms are more comprehensive and balanced in terms of both quantity and quality of supplementary nutrition based on the principles of diet diversity that provides for quality protein, healthy fats and micronutrients.

Fortified rice is being supplied to AWCs to meet the requirement of micro-nutrients and to control anaemia among women and children. Greater emphasis is being laid on the use of millets at least once a week for preparation of Hot Cooked Meal and Take Home ration at Anganwadi centers.

Ministries of Women & Child Development and Health & Family Welfare have jointly released the protocol for Community Management of Malnutrition (CMAM) to prevent and treat severely acute malnutrition in children and for reducing associated morbidity and mortality.

Under this Mission, one of the major activities undertaken is Community Mobilization and Awareness Advocacy to educate people on nutritional aspects as adoption of good nutrition habit requires sustained efforts for behavioural change. State and UTs are  conducting  and  reporting  regular  sensitisation  activities  under  Jan  Andolans during  Poshan  Maahs  and  Poshan  Pakhwadas  celebrated  in  the  months  of September and March-April  respectively.  Community  Based  Events  (CBEs)  have served as a significant strategy in changing nutritional practices and all Anganwadi workers are required to conduct two Community Based Events every month.

Anemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) program is implemented by Government of India to reduce prevalence  of  anemia  among  children  and  women  including  pregnant  women  and lactating mothers in life cycle approach through implementation of six interventionsProphylactic Iron and Folic Acid supplementation (IFA Syrup is provided biweekly to Children 6-59 months, IFA Pink tablet is provided once weekly to children 5-9 years, IFA Blue is provided once weekly to adolescents 10-19 years,  IFA Red is provided once weekly to Women of Reproductive age group and IFA Red tablets (daily for 180 days) are provided to pregnant women and lactating mothers), Deworming (Pregnant women  are  provided  albendazole  tablet  in  second  trimester  and  all  children  are provided albendazole tablets during National Deworming Day), Intensified Behavioral Change Communication campaign, Testing for anemia and treatment as per anemia management  protocols,  mandatory  provision  of  IFA  fortified  food  in  public  health program and addressing non nutritional causes of anemia especially malaria, fluorosis and hemoglobinopathies) via robust institutional mechanisms.

Details of women suffering from anaemia are released under National Family Health Survey (NFHS), which is conducted by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. As per National  Family  Health  Survey  5  (2019-21),  the  prevalence  of  anaemia  among  all women aged 15-49 years is 57 percent in the country.

The District wise prevalence of anemia among women as per National Family Health Survey-5  (2019-21)  for  the  State  of  Jharkhand  and  Tamil  Nadu,  is  available  at https://www.data.gov.in/catalog/national-family-health-survey-5-nfhs-5-india-districtsfactsheet-data

Under Mission Poshan 2.0, funds released to Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu since 202122, is provided at Annexure - I .

The State-wise malnutrition indicators of children (0-5 years) in the country for Feb 2023, Feb 2024 and Feb 2025 as per Poshan Tracker is provided at Annexure - II .

The District-wise malnutrition status of children (0-5 years) in Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu including in Dharmapuri Parliamentary Constituency (which includes Dharmapuri and Salem districts) is provided at Annexure - III .

The  detail  of  women  suffering  from  anemia  in  the  Jharkhand,  Tamil  Nadu  and Dharmapuri  Parliamentary  constituency  (which  includes  Dharmapuri  and  Salem districts) in Tamil Nadu is provided at Annexure-IV .

The  detail  of  measures  taken  by  Ministry  of  Health  &  Family  Welfare  to  address anemia, in addition to mentioned above, is provided at Annexure-V .

*****

Annexure-I

ANNEXURE REFERRED IN REPLY TO PART (d) OF LOK SABHA QUESTION NO. 3486 FOR 21.03.2025 REGARDING 'ANEMIA AMONG WOMEN' ASKED BY SHRI MANI A, SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI, MS MAHUA MOITRA AND DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY

Under Mission Poshan 2.0, funds released to Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu since 202122 are as follows:

|   (in crore)* |
|---------------|
|       2829.35 |

* Funds released up to 28 February 2025

## Annexure-II

## ANNEXURE REFERRED IN REPLY TO PART (e) OF LOK SABHA QUESTION NO. 3486 FOR 21.03.2025 REGARDING 'ANEMIA AMONG WOMEN' ASKED BY SHRI MANI A, SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI, MS MAHUA MOITRA AND DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY

State wise details of malnutrition indicators of children (0-5 years) in the country for Feb 2023, Feb 2024 and Feb 2025 as per Poshan Tracker are as follows:

| S. No.   | State             | Feb-23   | Feb-24   | Feb-24       | Feb-24   | Feb-25   | Feb-25       | Feb-25    | Feb-25   | Feb-25       |
|----------|-------------------|----------|----------|--------------|----------|----------|--------------|-----------|----------|--------------|
| S. No.   | State             | Stunted% | Wasted%  | Underweight% | Stunted% | Wasted%  | Underweight% | Stunting% | Wasting% | Underweight% |
| 1        | Andhra Pradesh    | 20.00    | 4.95     | 9.69         | 20.30    | 5.49     | 9.77         | 18.27     | 4.83     | 7.91         |
| 2        | Arunachal Pradesh | 32.07    | 4.90     | 12.50        | 30.26    | 4.72     | 8.97         | 37.18     | 4.54     | 10.76        |
| 3        | Assam             | 38.76    | 7.17     | 18.27        | 40.28    | 4.50     | 15.63        | 42.79     | 4.12     | 16.41        |
| 4        | Bihar             | 41.60    | 10.52    | 25.10        | 41.44    | 9.99     | 23.25        | 47.33     | 9.58     | 24.09        |
| 5        | Chhattisgarh      | 37.40    | 13.54    | 17.11        | 33.57    | 9.90     | 15.20        | 26.20     | 6.96     | 13.35        |
| 6        | Goa               | 25.79    | 6.03     | 11.17        | 18.36    | 2.37     | 5.56         | 7.51      | 1.10     | 2.46         |
| 7        | Gujarat           | 51.80    | 7.69     | 22.43        | 43.48    | 8.30     | 19.82        | 36.53     | 7.95     | 19.84        |
| 8        | Haryana           | 30.74    | 7.33     | 12.49        | 26.40    | 4.98     | 7.90         | 27.63     | 4.17     | 8.38         |
| 9        | Himachal Pradesh  | 25.05    | 3.47     | 8.97         | 19.79    | 1.88     | 5.93         | 19.47     | 2.07     | 6.31         |
| 10       | Jharkhand         | 40.40    | 9.70     | 23.09        | 41.52    | 7.86     | 18.58        | 43.91     | 6.39     | 19.14        |
| 11       | Karnataka         | 39.41    | 8.41     | 19.95        | 40.72    | 7.86     | 18.33        | 41.20     | 3.68     | 17.61        |
| 12       | Kerala            | 35.73    | 8.70     | 14.43        | 32.93    | 3.20     | 9.41         | 37.05     | 2.93     | 10.30        |
| 13       | Madhya Pradesh    | 54.12    | 7.69     | 26.22        | 41.26    | 6.47     | 21.89        | 46.60     | 7.04     | 25.42        |
| 14       | Maharashtra       | 46.06    | 7.11     | 19.83        | 48.63    | 5.42     | 18.19        | 44.45     | 3.80     | 14.63        |
| 15       | Manipur           | 17.76    | 1.64     | 7.48         | 16.89    | 1.55     | 7.97         | 9.69      | 0.66     | 2.77         |
| 16       | Meghalaya         | 28.42    | 2.49     | 8.01         | 22.94    | 1.39     | 5.22         | 19.02     | 0.92     | 4.21         |
| 17       | Mizoram           | 22.08    | 4.05     | 6.51         | 24.64    | 3.26     | 6.21         | 29.53     | 2.49     | 6.44         |
| 18       | Nagaland          | 42.86    | 6.43     | 12.14        | 27.02    | 5.52     | 7.16         | 31.15     | 5.61     | 7.26         |
| 19       | Odisha            | 31.17    | 5.00     | 14.62        | 28.17    | 3.60     | 12.27        | 28.95     | 2.98     | 11.88        |

| 20    | Punjab                              | 26.05   | 7.39   | 12.35   |   18.65 |   4.11 |   6.69 |   20.67 |   3.50 |   6.49 |
|-------|-------------------------------------|---------|--------|---------|---------|--------|--------|---------|--------|--------|
| 21    | Rajasthan                           | 34.10   | 11.43  | 20.32   |   37.43 |   7.71 |  17.63 |   38.57 |   6.31 |  18.67 |
| 22    | Sikkim                              | 14.97   | 3.10   | 3.81    |   12.53 |   2.61 |   2.24 |   10.26 |   2.04 |   2.02 |
| 23    | Tamil Nadu                          | 19.27   | 5.15   | 9.43    |   15.08 |   3.98 |   7.05 |   13.76 |   3.46 |   6.4  |
| 24    | Telangana                           | 27.27   | 4.86   | 13.41   |   29.25 |   4.63 |  12.55 |   33.39 |   5.25 |  15.44 |
| 25    | Tripura                             | 39.22   | 8.74   | 17.11   |   38.08 |   7.18 |  15.45 |   41.35 |   6.99 |  17.28 |
| 26    | Uttar Pradesh                       | 47.66   | 7.42   | 20.92   |   46.17 |   5.24 |  19.19 |   48.72 |   4.34 |  19.76 |
| 27    | Uttarakhand                         | 33.29   | 7.54   | 9.05    |   34.23 |   5.77 |   8.31 |   23.76 |   2.4  |   6.21 |
| 28    | West Bengal                         | 40.77   | 9.59   | 15.26   |   37.36 |   8.21 |  12.01 |   35.22 |   6.57 |  11.01 |
| 29    | Andaman & Nicobar I slands          | 25.41   | 6.73   | 10.71   |   20.19 |   4.34 |   7.67 |    8.33 |   2.11 |   3.62 |
| 30    | Dadra & Nagar Havel i - Daman & Diu | 53.13   | 11.79  | 36.42   |   48.16 |  10.28 |  31.03 |   38.15 |   2.47 |  14.46 |
| 31    | Delhi                               | 22.40   | 2.01   | 10.01   |   38.43 |   2    |  15.92 |   42.9  |   2.51 |  17.81 |
| 32    | J&K                                 | 15.37   | 1.85   | 5.89    |   16.38 |   2.28 |   4.41 |   14.32 |   1.28 |   3.47 |
| 33    | Ladakh                              | 22.32   | 3.66   | 6.67    |   13.13 |   0.89 |   2.58 |   10.31 |   0.19 |   1.54 |
| 34    | Lakshadweep                         | NA      | NA     | NA      |   44.25 |  14.84 |  26.96 |   40.62 |  11.86 |  22.17 |
| 35    | Puducherry                          | 26.59   | 8.21   | 11.53   |   32.69 |   7.44 |  11.25 |   41.13 |   7.36 |  13.22 |
| 36    | UT-Chandigarh                       | 33.09   | 2.64   | 14.09   |   25.32 |   0.27 |   7.12 |   26.77 |   1.66 |   9.21 |
| Total | Total                               | 39.37   | 7.71   | 18.44   |   38.22 |   6.26 |  16.52 |   39.09 |   5.35 |  16.6  |

Annexure-III

ANNEXURE  REFERRED  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a  and  c)  OF  LOK  SABHA QUESTION NO. 3486 FOR 21.03.2025 REGARDING 'ANEMIA AMONG WOMEN' ASKED BY SHRI MANI A, SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI, MS MAHUA MOITRA AND DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY

- 1) The District-wise malnutrition status of children (0-5 years) in Jharkhand for the month of Feb 2025 from Poshan Tracker is as follows:

| S. No.   | District             |   Stunted% |   Wasted% |   Underweight% |
|----------|----------------------|------------|-----------|----------------|
| 1        | Bokaro               |      43.13 |      7.29 |          18.23 |
| 2        | Chatra               |      42.92 |      6.09 |          13.98 |
| 3        | Deoghar              |      40.99 |      6.41 |          15.93 |
| 4        | Dhanbad              |      37.82 |      6.94 |          14.95 |
| 5        | Dumka                |      48.18 |      6.16 |          21.34 |
| 6        | East Singhbhum       |      48.61 |      5.11 |          22.07 |
| 7        | Garhwa               |      41.6  |      8.69 |          15.38 |
| 8        | Giridih              |      39.08 |      4.32 |          14.67 |
| 9        | Godda                |      49.72 |      6.69 |          26.41 |
| 10       | Gumla                |      46.15 |      5.99 |          19.43 |
| 11       | Hazaribag            |      47.68 |      6.48 |          18.9  |
| 12       | Jamtara              |      40.9  |      7.77 |          15.78 |
| 13       | Khunti               |      46.25 |      7.2  |          22.34 |
| 14       | Koderma              |      45.34 |      5.21 |          19.29 |
| 15       | Latehar              |      48.69 |      6.39 |          25.85 |
| 16       | Lohardaga            |      43.07 |      4.37 |          16.81 |
| 17       | Pakur                |      45.73 |      5.34 |          18.53 |
| 18       | Palamu               |      41.92 |      6.57 |          17.9  |
| 19       | Ramgarh              |      52.41 |      8.1  |          26.39 |
| 20       | Ranchi               |      32.68 |      6.64 |          13.39 |
| 21       | Sahibganj            |      36.62 |      5.51 |           9.88 |
| 22       | Seraikela- Kharsawan |      45.78 |      4.51 |          21.65 |
| 23       | Simdega              |      33.05 |      6.98 |          12.89 |
| 24       | West Singhbhum       |      65.63 |      9.17 |          43.89 |
|          | Total                |      43.91 |      6.39 |          19.14 |

(2) The District-wise malnutrition status of children (0-5 years) in Tamil Nadu including in  Dharmapuri  Parliamentary  Constituency  (which  includes  Dharmapuri  and  Salem districts) for the month of Feb 2025 from Poshan Tracker is as follows:

| S. No.   | District        |   Stunted% |   Wasted% |   Underweight% |
|----------|-----------------|------------|-----------|----------------|
| 1        | Ariyalur        |      12.09 |      3.23 |           6.59 |
| 2        | Chengalpattu    |      12.84 |      3.71 |           7.07 |
| 3        | Chennai         |      10.85 |      2.35 |           5.54 |
| 4        | Coimbatore      |      11.42 |      2.81 |           5.13 |
| 5        | Cuddalore       |      15.54 |      3.41 |           6.26 |
| 6        | Dharmapuri      |      11.21 |      2.21 |           3.29 |
| 7        | Dindigul        |      17    |      3.86 |           7.4  |
| 8        | Erode           |      11.46 |      3.66 |           6.89 |
| 9        | Kallakurichi    |      14.64 |      3.99 |           7.69 |
| 10       | Kanchipuram     |       8.95 |      2.17 |           4.26 |
| 11       | Kanyakumari     |       8.75 |      2.33 |           4.03 |
| 12       | Karur           |      16.03 |      4.83 |           8.37 |
| 13       | Krishnagiri     |      22.75 |      4.44 |           8.78 |
| 14       | Madurai         |      13.48 |      3.49 |           6.78 |
| 15       | Mayiladuthurai  |      16.91 |      3.74 |           5.96 |
| 16       | Nagapattinam    |      13.08 |      3.96 |           6.25 |
| 17       | Namakkal        |      15.45 |      5.04 |           8.09 |
| 18       | Perambalur      |      19.38 |      5.21 |          10.37 |
| 19       | Pudukkottai     |      17.02 |      4.26 |           7.68 |
| 20       | Ramanathapuram  |      12.15 |      3.52 |           5.85 |
| 21       | Ranipet         |      19.6  |      4.85 |           8.98 |
| 22       | Salem           |       8.76 |      2.25 |           3.54 |
| 23       | Sivaganga       |      11.39 |      3.94 |           6.47 |
| 24       | Tenkasi         |      14.76 |      3.88 |           7.01 |
| 25       | Thanjavur       |      11.08 |      3.19 |           4.99 |
| 26       | The Niligiris   |      25.67 |      5.14 |          14    |
| 27       | Theni           |      16.88 |      4.31 |           6.66 |
| 28       | Thiruvallur     |      16.57 |      3.53 |           7.54 |
| 29       | Thiruvarur      |      14.8  |      3.77 |           5.3  |
| 30       | Tiruchirappalli |      11.73 |      3.4  |           6.78 |
| 31       | Tirunelveli     |      17.96 |      3.87 |           8.75 |
| 32       | Tirupathur      |      14.24 |      2.96 |           4.77 |
| 33       | Tiruppur        |       8.19 |      2.62 |           4.19 |
| 34       | Tiruvannamalai  |      13.53 |      3.37 |           6.17 |
| 35       | Tuticorin       |      13.15 |      3.06 |           6.18 |
| 36       | Vellore         |      16.6  |      4.3  |           7.82 |
| 37       | Villupuram      |      13.54 |      3.47 |           6    |
| 38       | Virudhunagar    |      18.25 |      3.96 |           8.88 |
|          | Total           |      13.76 |      3.46 |           6.4  |

## Annexure-IV

ANNEXURE  REFERRED  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a  and  c)  OF  LOK  SABHA QUESTION NO. 3486 FOR 21.03.2025 REGARDING 'ANEMIA AMONG WOMEN' ASKED BY SHRI MANI A, SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI, MS MAHUA MOITRA AND DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY

As per National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-21), the prevalence of anemia among women in Jharkhand and Dharmapuri Parliamentary constituency (Dharampuri and Salem district)  in Tamil Nadu is as below:

| Jharkhand   | Tamil Nadu   | Dharampuri district   | Salem district   |
|-------------|--------------|-----------------------|------------------|
| 65.3%       | 53.4%        | 42.5%                 | 46.3%            |

## Annexure-V

ANNEXURE  REFERRED  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (b  and  d)  OF  LOK  SABHA QUESTION NO. 3486 FOR 21.03.2025 REGARDING 'ANEMIA AMONG WOMEN' ASKED BY SHRI MANI A, SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI, MS MAHUA MOITRA AND DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY

The  detail  of  measures  taken  by  Ministry  of  Health  &  Family  Welfare  to  address anemia, in addition to mentioned above:

The  Ministry  of  Health  and  Family  Welfare  implements  Reproductive,  Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health and Nutrition (RMNCAH+N) strategy in a life cycle approach  under  National  Health  Mission  (NHM),  which  includes  interventions  to address anemia and malnutrition as placed below:

- Nutrition Rehabilitation Centers (NRCs) are set up at public health facilities to provide  in-patient  medical  and  nutritional  care  to  children  under  5  years suffering from Severe Acute Malnourishment (SAM) with medical complications with special focus on improving the skills of mothers and caregivers on timely, adequate and appropriate feeding for children.
- Mothers'  Absolute  Affection  (MAA)  Programme  is  implemented  to  improve breastfeeding  coverage  which  includes  early  initiation  of  breastfeeding  and exclusive  breastfeeding  for  first  six  months  followed  by  counselling  on  ageappropriate complementary feeding practices.
- Lactation  Management  Centres:  Lactation  Management  Units  (LMU)  are facilities  established  to  provide  lactation  support  to  mothers  and  to  facilitate expression of mother's own milk and Comprehensive Lactation Management Centres  (CLMC)  are  established  to  ensure  availability  of  safe,  pasteurized Donor Human Milk for feeding of  sick,  preterm  and  low  birth  weight  babies admitted in Neonatal Intensive Care Units and Special Newborn Care Units.
- Under National Deworming Day (NDD)albendazole tablets are administered in a single fixed day approach via schools and Anganwadi centres in two rounds (February and August) to reduce the soil transmitted helminth (STH) infestation among all children and adolescents (1-19 years).
- Village  Health  Sanitation  and  Nutrition  Days  (VHSNDs)  are  observed  for provision  of  maternal  and  child  health  services  and  creating  awareness  on maternal  and  child  care  including  nutrition  in  convergence  with  Ministry  of Women and Child Development.

The States are provided funds by the National Health Mission based on the proposals received in their Annual Programme Implementation Plans.

*****