In India, more than 56,000 children under the age of five are currently grappling with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and experiencing medical complications, leading to their admission in 1,129 Nutrition Rehabilitation Centres (NRCs) spread across 29 states and union territories. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya informed the Lok Sabha on Friday that over 11 lakh children are affected by SAM but do not require facility-based care.
As of June this year, 56,143 children under five are receiving treatment for SAM with medical complications at NRCs, compared to 1.89 lakh in 2022-23 and 1.32 lakh in 2021-22. In 2020-21, 1.04 lakh children with SAM and medical complications were admitted to NRCs.
Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of SAM children admitted to NRCs at 16,276, followed by Gujarat (5,694), Odisha (4,465), Uttar Pradesh (4,258), and Jharkhand (4,004). In the southern states, Karnataka reported the highest number of SAM children admitted to NRCs this year (1,822), with the figures standing at 7,359 in the previous year.
NRCs, situated in public health facilities, offer in-patient medical and nutritional care to children under five suffering from SAM and medical complications. The services include 24-hour monitoring, treatment of medical issues, therapeutic feeding, sensory stimulation, emotional care, social assessments, counseling, and follow-up care for discharged children.
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