Despite its growing prosperity, India has the highest burden of malnutrition in the world. Malnutrition is an underlying cause of almost half of all child deaths, and, for those children who survive, leads to cognitive impairment that prevents tens of millions of children from ever reaching their potential due to water quality and depletion of water resource, lack of nutrition in soil and food items.
Climate change can have both direct and indirect human health impacts. Direct impact is heat and cold related stress. Indirect impacts arise from changes in temperature patterns, which may disturb natural ecosystems, change the ecology of infectious diseases, harm agriculture and fresh water supplies, exacerbate air pollution levels, and cause large-scale reorganization of plant and animal communities.
As the economist Dean Spears has written, “Because the problems that prevent children from growing tall also prevent them from growing into healthy, productive, smart adults, height predicts adult economic outcomes and cognitive achievement.” In short, India’s malnutrition crisis is not just bad for India’s malnourished children; it also limits the country’s economic progress.
Moreover, India has the schemes in place to drive rapid improvements in health. The National Rural Health Mission was created in 2005 and provides a framework by which the government can support the health goals outlined at the sub-district, district and state levels.
But there is more India can do to advance health. First and foremost, public spending on healthcare in India is extremely low – 1.1% of GDP. That compares to 2.4% in China and 4.9% in Brazil, two other rapidly growing countries that are wisely betting on health as a key component of growth.
The global climate is now changing faster than at any point in human civilization, and many of the effects on health will be acutely felt. The most severe risks are to developing countries, with negative implications for the achievement of the health related Millennium Development Goals and for healthy equity. Change in world climate would influence the functioning of many ecosystems and their member species.
Recent Steps Taken by the Government of India
Ø Solar energy
Ø Enhanced Energy Efficiency
Ø Sustainable Habitat
Ø Conserving Water
Ø Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem
Ø A “Green India”
Ø Sustainable Agriculture
Ø Strategic Knowledge Platform for Climate Change
