According to FAO estimates in ‘The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, 2020 report, 189.2 million people are undernourished in India. By this measure 14% of the population is undernourished in India. Further according to the report 34.7% of the children aged under five in India are stunted (too short for their age), while 20% suffer from wasting, meaning their weight is too low for their height.
900 million people in the world cannot read or write . 287 million, or 37% of the world’s illiterate people , are Indian according to UNESCO. While education is every child’s basic right, severe poverty and deprivation, population growth, war zones and natural catastrophes are depriving many children of a world of books and learning . India has an estimated 46 million children between 6-18 years of age who are not in school . Some have never had the chance and many have had to drop out - either to work as child labourers or because they’re being forced to get married.
The cities of India are some of the most densely populated regions in the whole world. These places offer jobs to people who leave their homes in search of employment and livelihood. Most of these migrant laborers are poverty-stricken and lack the basic necessities of life. At any given point in time, the number of homeless people in these cities is about 3 million. They do not have substantial food to feed their children, no proper shelter to protect them from the harsh weather, and the evil of the society. The problems they face on a daily basis can only be a nightmare for the upper class of society.
Persons with disabilities are considered as one of the marginalised groups in the whole world. They have the same kind of health needs like non-disabled ones — for health screening, immunisation etc. They may even experience a narrower health margin, both because of social exclusion and poverty, and even because they can be vulnerable to the secondary conditions like urinary tract infections or pressure sores. According to studies, PWDs often have lower education accomplishments, poorer health conditions, higher poverty rates and less economic engagement than people without disabilities
The elderly Indian population is one of the fastest-growing in the world. India has the second-largest global population of ageing citizens . Studies show over 70% of senior citizens in India face abuse - verbal, physical, emotional and financial. They also live with deteriorating health conditions they cannot afford to treat , for most Indian senior citizens, the biggest concerns are Healthcare costs, Lack of financial support and Isolation. In addition, most of the aged are not accorded the dignity of care they deserve in later life. Lack of physical infrastructure is a major deterrent to providing comfort for the aged.
