The pillars of development: Literacy and nourishment
It is common knowledge that education and nourishment are two important pillars that must be regularly strengthened for the development and flourishment of any nation. When individuals of a nation are not provided with the necessary levels of nutrition, they begin experiencing stunted physical and mental growth, along with other serious health issues related to malnourishment. Individuals affected by malnourishment also experience poor levels of concentration and high levels of fatigue. Malnourishment and illiteracy in India India has recently slipped further down the global hunger index, and ranks 101 amongst the 116 countries on the index. Research has shown that a large part of the malnourishment problem in India begins from childhood, as innumerable young children in India do not receive the necessary nutrients for development. Donate money to ngo Malnourishment amongst young children has been a rampant issue primarily in the destitute communities of India and continues to be one of the leading causes of child morbidity. Lakhs of school-going children in India attend classes on an empty stomach. This classroom hunger often drags into adulthood, and malnourishment continues to have dire effects on communities. These children usually perform poorly in academics, and a large majority do not even complete their education due to these reasons. Many drop out of schools in search of jobs and end up working as child labours, leading to becoming illiterates. Trends have also shown that malnourishment during childhood leads to less productivity even if they join the workforce as adults, pushing them deeper into the state of poverty. This vicious cycle creates a serious socio-economic problem, which must be addressed at the ground level to push our nation towards development. Mid-day meal scheme as a solution The mid-day meal initiative was launched by the Government of India in 1995 to curb the issues of malnourishment and illiteracy. Under this scheme, school-going children are provided with wholesome and nourishing meals once a day. The mid-day meal scheme also came under the purview of the National Food Security Act, 2013. Since then, the program has begun to show significant positive effects, as rates of classroom hunger and childhood malnourishment have reduced. The secondary effect that the scheme has had is that the meals provided act as an incentive for families to send their children to school. So, more students have been completing their education, which helps them to join a better workforce and earn handsomely. This has in turn improved the rates of literacy across the country.
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