Addressing the nation in his monthly radio programme, Mann Ki Baat, on August 25 Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that rice provided to India’s poor categorized under five government schemes, including the public distribution system and mid-day meals, will soon be fortified with micronutrients such as vitamin B12, iron, and folic acid, to help fight malnutrition. The government believes that micronutrients, which enable the body to produce enzymes and hormones essential for growth, can play a crucial role in the country where 38 percent children under five years are stunted and 36 percent are underweight, as per the National Family Health Survey 2015-16. The rice fortification scheme will be implemented in 15 districts of 15 states on a pilot basis from this Kharif season. The announcement has rekindled the debate on whether fortification helps combat malnutrition and who actually benefits from the move. “There is no proven case in any part of the world where fortification has reduced malnutrition,” says Umesh Kapil of the department of gastroenterology and human nutrition unit at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi. “Sometimes it can have the opposite effect. Natural foods contain protective substances such as phytochemicals and polyunsaturated fat that are adversely affected by the process of blending micronutrients,” says Delhi-based pediatrician Arun Gupta.
FORTIFICATION IS A lucrative business and a government backing translates into an assured market worth crores of rupees. Globally, just five multinationals— Germany’s BASF, Switzerland’s Lonza, France’s Adisseo and the Netherlands’ Royal DSM and ADM— manufacture micronutrients and all Indian entities that sell micronutrients import from them. “These multinationals govern the world market through a cartel,” says Vijay Sardana, a Delhi-based agribusiness and trade analyst.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة September 16, 2019 من Down To Earth.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة September 16, 2019 من Down To Earth.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Vision 2030
Economic growth must take into account needs of energy transition, climate mitigation, with action aligned as per India's 2030 climate goals
FIX OUR FOOD
Chemical-dependent farming, lax labelling laws, rising anti-microbial resistance must top the agenda
BATTLE THE CAR BULGE
Clean, affordable, integrated and accessible public transport the only solution
CONSERVE NOW
Disregard for biodiversity conservation over the past two decades needs immediate redressal
SCRAP THE DUMP
Disincentivise garbage dumping, invest in behavioural change
PLAN THEM COOL
As urban India turns into a heat trap, the government must focus on improving cities' liveability
THINK LONG-TERM
India needs continued emphasis on flagship programmes, aligned to long-term planning that focusses on water security and circular economy in a climate-risked era
OVERHAUL OVERDUE
Hold polluting industries accountable for public health risks, environmental hazards, climate change; provide them support for green transition
LOOK BEYOND DUST
Reinvent National Clean Air Programme to focus on fine particulate matter and trans-boundary pollution
IT'S NOW OR NEVER
Clean energy sectors need demand-driven markets and domestic industries that can cater to the entire value chain