34 pc of children in Gujarat are undernourished: NGO

NGO 'Wada Na Todo Abhiyan' said it has analysed the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) data of Gujarat and found that 34.05 per cent children in the state fall under various categories of undernourishment.

The report evaluated key areas of governance such as poverty and hunger, primary education, women empowerment and social exclusion, health and environment sustainability. It also reflected on progress of nine major states in achieving millennium development goals (MDGs).

It also claimed Bihar requires seven lakh teachers in the primary education sector.

Mazher Hussain, representing the initiative, said "through the report we are trying to hold governments accountable on whatever they have have promised to people. We are acting as facilitators and are trying to make people conscious, so that they don't let go of the government easily."

The report claimed that not even a single grain of wheat reached the targeted poor in eight north-eastern states for the year 2006-07.

"We evaluated the broad promises made by the government across political parties and states, investigated their ground realities and reflected it back to the government," Richa Singh, convener of the initiative, said.

The flagships employment-programme of the UPA government MNREGA reached six-seven per cent of village families in Bihar, the report claims.

The report claimed 53 per cent of the women in the age-group of 19-49 are anaemic in Tamil Nadu.

Hussain said three main reasons for the inability in the realisation of MDGs are "top-down approach of policy-planning, lack of awareness and poor implementation and rampant corruption". (More)