India continues to face a major challenge with child stunting despite efforts under the POSHAN Abhiyaan launched in 2018. The programme aimed to reduce stunting in children under five years by at least two percentage points annually. However, recent data from June 2025 shows only a marginal decline from 38.4% in 2016 to 37%. This stagnation marks deep-rooted systemic problems affecting child nutrition and growth.
About Child Stunting
Stunting refers to a condition where a child is too short for their age due to chronic or recurrent malnutrition. It affects physical growth and cognitive development. Nearly half of stunted children are born small, indicating that stunting begins even before birth. This condition is a visible indicator of broader deprivation and poor maternal health.
Maternal Health and Early Pregnancy
Teenage pregnancies contribute to stunting. Young mothers’ bodies are often not ready for pregnancy, leading to low birth weight babies. Early motherhood also reduces the mother’s ability to provide adequate care. Despite laws against child marriage, about 7% of women aged 15-19 in India had begun childbearing as of 2019-21.
Role of Maternal Education
Mother’s education strongly influences child nutrition. Children of mothers with no schooling have a stunting rate of 46%, compared to 26% among those whose mothers have 12 or more years of education. Educated mothers are more likely to seek antenatal care, delay pregnancies, and follow better nutrition practices.
Impact of Caesarean Deliveries
C-section rates have risen from 9% in 2005-06 to over 22% in 2021. While not a direct cause, C-sections can delay initiation of breastfeeding. Babies born via C-section often miss early colostrum feeding due to mother’s recovery or separation in neonatal units. This affects infant nutrition in critical early days.
Breastfeeding and Socioeconomic Factors
Only 64% of infants under six months are exclusively breastfed. Socioeconomic disparities affect breastfeeding duration. For example, domestic workers return to work within weeks postpartum, limiting breastfeeding frequency. In contrast, government employees may receive six months’ maternity leave.
Diet Quality and Nutritional Deficiencies
Dietary patterns in many Indian households are carbohydrate-heavy and protein-poor. Only 11% of children aged 6-23 months receive a minimum acceptable diet, which includes adequate diversity and frequency. Anaemia is widespread among women (57%) and children (67%), worsening nutritional outcomes.
Sanitation and Environmental Factors
Unsafe water and open defecation, still practised by 19% of households, expose children to infections. These infections impair gut health and nutrient absorption, creating a cycle of illness and malnutrition. Contaminated groundwater further exacerbates this problem.
Long-Term Implications of Stunting
Stunting impacts more than height. It correlates with poverty, poor education, reduced employability, and weaker cognitive skills. This traps families in an intergenerational cycle of deprivation and limits national human capital development.
Questions for UPSC:
- Critically discuss the role of maternal health and education in reducing child malnutrition in India.
- Analyse the impact of sanitation and water quality on public health and child nutrition in rural India.
- Examine the causes and consequences of rising Caesarean section rates in India and their effects on infant health.
- Estimate the socio-economic factors influencing breastfeeding practices in India and suggest policy measures to improve them.
