Nutritional Status of Under-Five Children: A Comparative Assessment between Malda and Pakur Districts of West Bengal and Jharkhand

UNICEF estimated that nearly 2.6 million children, who die due to malnutrition each year, are equivalent to one-third of all registered child deaths of the world (Alkema, 2014). All over the world, it is found that the half of the children’s death having due to malnutrition and most of these found in Asia having a death rate of 41%, Africa 51% and the rest of the world at 8%, (UNICEF, 2007). In developing countries, 1 out of every 4 children (roughly 146 million) is underweight and 10.9 million children under five years die each year. About 60 percent of the children’s death caused due to malnutrition and hunger-related diseases (UNICEF, 2007). In India, the percentage of child mortality is very high in EAG (Empowered Action Group States) compared to non-EAG states. In Pakur district the number of underweight children is more (46.9%)compared toMalda district (37.2%) due to high fertility, low birth spacing, low educational attainments and low family income. Families whose income is low, they can’t provide enough nutritional foods to their children and as a result, growth of the child is interrupted which leads to stunted and wasted growth of the child. This situation is more vulnerable in the rural areas of Pakur.In Pakur, Body Mass Index (BMI) of the children is very low that means they suffered from malnutrition. Due to low level of Growth, children are often suffering from various childhood morbidities. This study is an attempt to find out the comparative nutritional status of U5 children between Malda and Pakur districts of West Bengal and Jharkhand respectively.