3% civic school students, 17% in anganwadis underweight: Study

The proportion of underweight children in municipal schools fell to 3% in 2018-19 from 5% in 2017-18, according to a report released by Praja Foundation on Tuesday.

The proportion of underweight children in municipal schools fell to 3% in 2018-19 from 5% in 2017-18, according to a report released by Praja Foundation on Tuesday. In the city’s anganwadis, there has been a marginal dip to 17% from 17.7% in the same period. The report, titled ‘State of health of children in Anganwadis and Municipal schools in Mumbai’, states that of the 2.26 lakh students surveyed in municipals schools, 7,383 were found to be underweight and 1,421 were reported overweight.

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In the city’s anganwadis, of the 2.86 lakh students screened, 48,849 (17%) were found to be underweight, while 2,713 were found to be severely underweight. Malwani in Malad and Mankhurd had the highest percentage of underweight children in anganwadis at 26.8% and 25.2%, respectively.

The report also shows that over 96,000 students (43%) in civic schools had dental issues and nearly 4,000 had a vitamin deficiency. Over 3,000 cases of anaemia were detected, 70% of which were among girls. The highest number of major ailments were from M-E ward, covering Govandi and nearby areas.

Milind Mhaske, director, Praja Foundation, said that despite several schemes such as the midday meal already in place, school children still lack nutrition. “While ₹25 crores were allocated to provide chickpeas and peanuts to all students [from Junior KG to Class 10] in municipal schools in 2017-18, no amount was spent in 2018-19.” Mahesh Palkar, BMC’s education officer, did not respond to calls and messages.