Report on Global Hunger Index irresponsible, mischievous: RSS body demands publishers’ actions
In an appeal to the Union government, the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) slated the 2022 Global Hunger Index report as “irresponsible and mischievous” and accused it of defaming India.
According to the Global Hunger Index 2022, India ranked 107 out of 121 countries, much behind its neighbours in South Asia, with the child wasting rate at 19.3 per cent, the highest in the world. Concern Worldwide and Welt Hunger Hilfe, non-governmental organizations from Ireland and Germany, recently released the report.
The German organization Welt Hunger Hilfe has once again released a ranking of 121 countries based on the World Hunger Index, prepared in a very irresponsible manner to defame India,” the RSS affiliate SJM said in response.
Rather than reflecting reality, this report is inaccurate and ridiculous, not only from the point of view of data, but also from the perspective of analysis and methodology. India was ranked 101 in a list of 116 countries earlier in October of last year,” it stated.
According to the SJM, India has strongly opposed the Global Hunger Index released last year in October, and has questioned the data and methodology used in the evaluation.
“The World Food Organization (FAO) announced that these errors would be corrected at that time. However, this year’s report has been released based on the same incorrect data and methodology,” the RSS affiliate stated.
According to the report, the 2022 Global Hunger Index clearly demonstrates the malafide intentions of its publishers.
“Swadeshi Jagran Manch once again expresses its anguish over this report and urges the government to reject this report and take appropriate action against the organizations spreading false information about India’s food security,” SJM stated.
According to the report, the Centre rejected the findings on Saturday, alleging it was an attempt to harm the country’s reputation and a methodological problem and an “erroneous measure” of hunger.
Immediately following the report’s publication, the Opposition leaders said that the government should take responsibility for its “failure”.
Ashwani Mahajan, co-convener of the SJM, emphasized that India is self-sufficient in food grains and other food products and is also a net exporter of food.
He noted that in 2021-22, India would produce 3,160 lakh tonnes of food grain or 227 kilograms per capita.
For the past 28 months, the Union government has been running the world’s largest food security programme, which distributes not only free food but also grains and pulses to 80 crore citizens.
Furthermore, about 7.71 crore children and 1.78 crore pregnant women and lactating mothers have also been provided with supplementary nutrition by 14 lakh Anganwadis, he said.
Global Hunger Index is useless for academics and attempts to defame India and its leadership. According to Mahajan, the report appears to be more of a political stunt.
It is imperative that false reports be “thoroughly exposed” and “true data” presented based on ground realities, free of statistical manipulations.
