Himachal Pradesh has registered a significant improvement in child nutrition indicators, according to the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), offering much-needed encouragement to policymakers and health authorities. The survey shows a substantial decline in key indicators of malnutrition among children below five years of age, including stunting, wasting and underweight prevalence.
As per the NFHS-6 findings, 20 per cent of children under five years are stunted, 10.4 per cent are wasted and 16.8 per cent are underweight. While these figures continue to reflect a public health challenge, the improvement becomes evident when compared with the findings of NFHS-5.
The previous survey had reported that 30.8 per cent of children in the state were stunted, 17.4 per cent were wasted and 25.5 per cent were underweight. The latest figures indicate a reduction of nearly 7 to 10 percentage points across all three indicators, marking a notable improvement in child health outcomes over the past few years.
In NFHS terminology, a child is considered stunted when he or she is too short for age, wasted when too thin for height and underweight when body weight is lower than the standard for age.
Pankaj Lalit, Director, Department of Women and Child Development, described the improvement as encouraging. He said that although the state still has a long way to go, Himachal’s performance is now better than that of many northern states and also exceeds the national average on several indicators.
Officials attribute the progress largely to targeted nutrition interventions and awareness campaigns. The Supplementary Nutrition Programme and the state government’s Baal Poshahaar Yojana have played a crucial role in addressing the nutritional needs of children aged six to 72 months, pregnant women, lactating mothers and severely malnourished children through Anganwadi centres.
The department has also intensified awareness initiatives such as Poshan Pakhwada and campaigns focusing on nutrition, sanitation, breastfeeding, anaemia prevention and diarrhoea management. Improved immunisation coverage and better protection against childhood infections have further contributed to the decline in malnutrition levels, strengthening the health and well-being of young children across the state.
From concern to confidence
