Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Venkatesh Athreya
Professor of Economics(Retd)
Bharathidasan University
Trends in undernourishment 1990 -2016
• The number of undernourished persons across the world declined from around one
billion in 1990-92 to around 795 million in 2014-16
• Developing regions accounted for 991 and 780 million respectively in 90-92 and
2014-16
• Asia accounted for 741 million of the undernourished in1990-92. In 2014-16, the
figure was 512 million, a decline in percentage terms from 74% in 90-92 to around
63%
• The numbers of UNPs declined most sharply for Eastern Asia from 295 to145 million
over this period, and this was mainly due to China’s remarkable progress.
• The least progress in Asia was in Southern Asia from 291 to 281 million over this
period
Trends in undernourishment 1990 -2016
• The proportion of UNPs in Southern Asia has declined from 23.9 percent in 1990–92 to
15.7 percent in 2014–16. The decline for India is similar, from 23.7% to 15.3%. Bangladesh has
done much better, with the proportion halving from 32.8% in 1990-92 to 16.4% in 2014-16.
• The number of UNPs came down from 289 to 134 million in China between 1990-92 and 2014-
16. Over the same period, the corresponding numbers for India are 210 and 195 million.
• China’s achievements in reducing hunger dominate the overall performance of Eastern Asia.
The country accounts for almost two-thirds of the reduction in the number of undernourished
people in the developing regions between 1990–92 and 2014–16.
• Proportion of children below 5 years underweight has declined more rapidly for India and the
Southern Asian region than the proportion of UNPs.
% Population Undernourished
Sri Lanka 27 24 20 21
China 15 12 10 10
Pakistan 22 18 21 23
Viet Nam 28 21 17 13
Nepal 21 24 19 16
• Access
• Absorption
A quick history of availability
• Food grain availability low at around 150
Kg per year at 1950, following five
decades of stagnation
• Increase at 3 % per year up to the mid
1960s, mostly through increase in area
sown
• Crisis in mid 60s, following successive
monsoon failures- “ Ship-to-mouth
existence”, with PL 480 grain shipments
A quick history of availability
• Green Revolution as policy response-not
just new technology, but major role of
State re. credit, public investment, farm
research, extension and assured
procurement as well as PDS
• Growth rate of food grain output higher
than population growth rate between 1950
and 1990 but stagnation in food grain
output from 1999-2000 to 2006-07
Area, Production and Yield of Food
Grain, 1997-98 to 2006-07
Year Area Production Yield
(Million Hectares) (Million Tonnes) (Kg per hectare)
2006-07 23827.6
2007-08 31259.7
2008-09 43668.1
2009-10 58242.4
2010-11 62929.6
2011-12 72370.9
2012-13 84554.0
2013-14 89740.0
2014-15 1,07,823.8