*Source: Nutrient Requirements and RDA for Indians, ICMR 1990
Shaheen, Sahiba, Shameem and Soni are among 13 severely malnourished girls in Dhannipur, a village in Varanasi. They weigh so little and are so weak that even a cold is fatal. If they do live, the long-term ill effects last for life. Stunted growth, brittle bones, disease-prone and worst of all, them giving birth to unhealthy babies. What they need is the right dietary supplements at the right time, so they can tip the scales and be healthy again. So they can have a wholesome future.
Mohammed Idrish was forced to make the toughest choice of his life. Selling his loom, his only means of earning four square meals, to afford the health care his son Sahabuddin so desperately needed.
Sahabuddin, aged two, weighed a measly six kilos, but carried the weight of poverty, hunger and deprivation on his little shoulders. The loom fetched Mohammed some extra money. But it didn't last very long. And neither did his son. Unable to sustain themselves, several other weavers in Dhannipur face similar fate. What they need is the health care they are entitled to, so their children can lead full lives.
Mushtaq should be at school or playing with his siblings, but all he does is sit lifelessly on his mother's lap. His mother spends a big chunk of her 700-rupee monthly earning on a nutritive drink because the Anganwadi doesn’t function. A street away, five-year-old Ugranarasimha weighs 7 kgs and cannot walk. 15-year old Nagaraj is fighting diabetes. But with the PHC being 16-kms away, he self-administers insulin shots and continues without medical attention.
They are just three of over 33,000 malnourished children in the Raichur district, neglected by the gamut of Central and State schemes, making them unable to overcome entirely preventable conditions and they continue to fight for their lives.
638 children are severely affected because most of the anganwadis lack nutritious food, basic medical infrastructure, and facilities for ante-and post-natal care of mothers. This and several other violations have been highlighted by Development Support members of CRY, in an attempt to ensure that they get the right care, at the right time.
They are just three of over 33,000 malnourished children in the Raichur district, neglected by the gamut of Central and State schemes, making them unable to overcome entirely preventable conditions and they continue to fight for their lives.
638 children are severely affected because most of the anganwadis lack nutritious food, basic medical infrastructure, and facilities for ante-and post-natal care of mothers. This and several other violations have been highlighted by Development Support members of CRY, in an attempt to ensure that they get the right care, at the right time.
CRY - Child Rights and You is an Indian NGO working for every child’s right to a childhood - to live, learn, grow and play. In over 30 years, along with partners we have worked with communities and parents to make lasting change in more than 20 lakh underprivileged children’s lives.
