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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Second Hunger Watch Survey shows high level of food insecurity among the poor & vulnerable people of 14 states
Second Hunger Watch Survey shows high level of food insecurity among the poor & vulnerable people of 14 states

Second Hunger Watch Survey shows high level of food insecurity among the poor & vulnerable people of 14 states

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published Published on Feb 23, 2022   modified Modified on Feb 23, 2022

-Press release by the Right to Food Campaign Secretariat dated February 23, 2022

* 66 percent respondents said that their income has decreased compared to the pre-pandemic period

* 80 percent reported some form of food insecurity, 25 percent reported severe food insecurity

* 41 percent said that nutritional quality of their diet deteriorated compared to the pre-pandemic period

* 67 percent could not afford cooking gas in the month preceding the survey.

* 45 percent households had some outstanding debt

The Right to Food Campaign organised a press conference at Press Club of India, New Delhi on 23rd February (Wednesday) at 3pm where the Hunger Watch-II findings were released.

Findings from the Hunger Watch-II survey, which covered over 6,500 people across 14 states were shared. Raj Shekhar, Kalyani Raghunathan and Dipa Sinha presented the findings of the survey. The survey was conducted by activists associated with the Right to Food campaign across the country. A number of students and volunteers also contributed to the data collection, cleaning, analysis and report writing.

Panelists at the press conference included Kavita Srivastava, Anjali Bhardwaj and Amrita Johri. The alarming situation of food insecurity in the country and the need for greater investments in food entitlement and social protection schemes was discussed. The Right to Food Campaign demanded that the PDS must be universalised and include pulses, millets and oils. The PMGKAY must be extended till such time that the pandemic continues. Mid day meals and nutrition given in anganwadis must be revived fully and they must be improved to include eggs, milk and fruits. Increase in social security pensions, maternity entitlements and allocations for MGNREGA were also demanded.

About Hunger Watch Surveys

The Right to Food Campaign in association with the Centre for Equity Studies and a number of other networks and organisations conducted the first Hunger Watch survey after the national lockdown in 2020 with three broad objectives. First, to track and document the hunger situation among vulnerable communities through in-person surveys. Second, to coordinate local action demanding access to rights and entitlements as a follow up to the survey. Third, to draw public attention to the scale of the problem and build public consciousness around the prevailing situation of hunger in the country. Please click here to access the major findings of the first round of the survey that was conducted in November, 2020.

Hunger Watch Survey-I showed that six months after the national lockdown (end-2020), the hunger situation was grave. Many households reported lower levels of income (62 percent), worsened nutritional quality (71 percent) and decrease in quantity of food consumed (66 percent) compared to the pre-lockdown period. Hunger Watch Survey-II shows that many of these issues remain pressing concerns even now.

The second round of surveys, henceforth referred to as Hunger Watch-II, was conducted in 14 states in December 2021-January 2022. With the same objectives as before, Hunger Watch-II sought to document the hunger situation six months after the devastating second wave of COVID-19 in India. Vulnerable communities in rural and urban areas were identified by local activists/researchers who then shortlisted households to be surveyed based on group discussions with the community. A simple questionnaire was developed and administered using smart phones. The survey itself was done in person. While the results being presented may not be representative of the district, state or country, they do, however, tell a story of deprivation of lakhs of households in similar situations.

What are the big concerns as per Hunger Watch-II Survey?

• Income shock: Two years into the pandemic, 66 percent of the respondents said that their income decreased as compared to pre-pandemic period.

• Poor food intake: Only 34 percent of the overall sample reported that their household’s cereal consumption in the month preceding the survey was sufficient. Using the Global Food Insecurity Experience Scale (GFIES) it was found that 79 percent of the households surveyed reported some form of food insecurity, and an alarmingly high 25 percent reported severe food insecurity.

• Poor diet quality: 41 percent of households reported that the nutritional quality of their diet had deteriorated compared to pre-pandemic levels.

• Access to Government Programmes: 84 percent of the households had a ration card and over 90 percent of those who had any ration card that is eligible for subsidised grains, said they received some food grains. However, a quarter of households with eligible members said that they did not receive MDMS or ICDS provisions. Many are left out of the food security net, calling for urgent strengthening and expansion of these schemes.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE HUNGER WATCH-II SURVEY

Profile of Respondents 

• 6,697 respondents from 14 states. 4,881 in rural areas and 1,816 in urban areas. 
• State-wise number of respondents: Uttar Pradesh (508), Madhya Pradesh (821), Gujarat (549), Rajasthan (105), Maharashtra (1182), Chhattisgarh (254), Jharkhand (166), Delhi (280), Telangana (98), Andhra Pradesh (150), Himachal Pradesh (260), Bihar (178), Karnataka (154), and West Bengal (1,992). 
• Nearly 31 percent of the surveyed households were STs, 25 percent were SCs, 19 percent belonged to the General category, 15 percent OBCs and 6 percent were Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs). 
• About 64 percent identified themselves as Hindus while 18 percent were Muslims. 
• Close to 71 percent of the respondents were women.
• Roughly 24 percent were single woman headed households, 6 percent of the respondents had households with a member who was disabled and 8 percent of the respondents were older person households without caregivers.
• Around 41 percent were non-agricultural casual labourers, 19 percent were agricultural casual labourers, 11 percent cultivators and 18 percent were regular salaried informal workers. About 6 percent of the respondents were unemployed.
• Almost 70 percent of the respondents reported household income of less than Rs. 7,000 per month.

Two years into the pandemic, incomes are low compared to pre-pandemic levels

• 66 percent of the respondents said that their income decreased as compared to pre-pandemic period. Among those who suffered a decline in their income, close to 60 percent said their current income was less than half what it had been before the pandemic.
• Overall, 40 percent of the households with working members and 31 percent of the total Hunger Watch-II sample reported that current incomes are less than half pre-pandemic levels.
• Close to 45 percent of the households had some outstanding debt. Among those with outstanding debt, 21 percent of the total respondents have a total amount of debt of more than 50,000 rupees.

High incidence of food insecurity

• We administered the Global Food Insecurity Experience Scale (GFIES), an 8-item scale that has been used in many countries around the world. 
• Close to 80 percent of the sample reported some form of food insecurity in the month preceding the survey. Around 31 percent reported mild food insecurity, 23 percent moderate, and a staggering 25 percent reported severe food insecurity.
• More than 60 percent worried about not having enough food, were unable to eat healthy or nutritious food or could eat only a few kinds of foods in the month preceding the survey.
• About 45 percent of the respondents reported that their household ran out of food in the month preceding the survey.
• Close to a third of the respondents reported that they or someone in their household had to skip a meal or sleep without eating in the month preceding the survey.

Overall decline in nutritional quality and quantity, even the relatively better off affected badly

• Only 34 percent reported that their consumption of cereals in the last month was sufficient.
• Consumption of nutrient rich foods was poor. A large proportion of households reported that they had eaten nutritious foods fewer than 2-3 times a month: 28 percent households reported having eating pulses fewer than 2-3 times a month. The corresponding figures for other foods are as follows: 28 percent for dark green leafy vegetables, 50 percent for milk or eggs, 55 percent for flesh foods, and 58 percent for fruits.
• Compared to pre-pandemic 41 percent of the respondents said that the nutritional quality and quantity of food the household eats had deteriorated.
• More than one-third of the respondents perceived that their food situation would remain the same or get worse in the next three months.
• 67 percent could not afford cooking gas in the month preceding the survey.

Health impacts of COVID-19

• Approximately 3 percent reported that someone in the household died of Covid-19, however, fewer than 45 percent of those reported receiving any death compensation.
• Nearly 23 percent of the households incurred a major health expenditure. Among those households, 13 percent incurred an expenditure of more than 50,000 INR and 35 percent of more than 10,000 INR.
• About 32 percent of the households reported that a member stopped working or lost wages due to COVID-19.

Impacts on children

• At least one in six households reported that their children have dropped out of school.
• At least one in sixteen households reported that children in their households have entered the workforce.
• These numbers are calculated from the full sample, some households of which might not have young children, and hence are likely to be conservative estimates of the impact on child education and labour.

Access to Entitlements

• About 84 percent have some kind of ration cards that give them subsidised grains (priority, AAY, state ration cards etc). Close to 2 percent had other cards such as temporary cards/coupons.
• Over 90 percent of those who had any ration card that is eligible for subsidised grains, said they received some food grains, including the free grains under PMGKAY during the last six months.
• Roughly 68 percent of those who had NFSA ration cards (5,936 households) said that they received free grains every month under PMGKAY during the last six months.
• 24 percent of households with eligible members reported not receiving any MDM transfers either in the form of cooked meals, dry rations or in cash; this rose to 28 percent for the ICDS transfers to eligible mothers or children, who are among those most vulnerable to hunger and malnourishment.
• Only 13 percent of those eligible said they had received Pradhan Mantri Matritva Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) maternity benefit entitlements regularly since the start of the pandemic. This number was 29 percent for pension payments among those households with an eligible member.

Major Demands of the Right to Food Campaign 

1. Universalisation of the Public Distribution System;
2. Expansion of the PDS;
3. Extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana;
4. Immediate implementation of the June 29th, 2021 order of the Supreme Court;
5. Provision of hot cooked meals under ICDS and midday meals;
6. Maternity entitlements should be universalized and made unconditional;
7. Social security pensions should increase at least to Rs.2,000; 
8. Revival of National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS); 
9. Child-care services must be expanded;
10. Allocation for NREGA should be increased to provide at least 200 days of work per year; and 
11. Wages of all workers providing care work, such as Anganwadi Workers and Helpers, ASHAs, should be enhanced and decent working conditions for them ensured.

Kindly click here to access the press hand-outs carrying the major findings (in English) of the Hunger Watch-II Survey. Please click here to access the key findings (in Hindi) of the Hunger Watch-II Survey.

Please click here to access the PPT in English. 

Kindly click here to access the PDF copy of the press release by the Right to Food Campaign Secretariat dated February 23, 2022.

For further details contact please write to: rtfcindia@gmail.com or call Raj Shekhar (7985946875).

 

Image Courtesy: Inclusive Media for Change/ Shambhu Ghatak


 


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