A health-screening session for adolescent girls and young women in Gumla district of Jharkhand showed that 90% of them were anaemic and had less than normal blood components. The study was conducted by Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) on a random sample of 100 young adults aged between 16 and 22 years from villages in Gumla.
According to the Gumla District Census Handbook, 2011, the district has 71% tribal households. Of this, over 65% of the tribal population make a living through cultivation while 20% works are agricultural labourers. Farming in villages such as those in Gumla provides us with a reservoir of food. But while we enjoy a bounty of diverse food crops, what do the farmers eat?
While a study revealed that the diet of Gumla’s villagers consisted mostly of rice and leafy vegetables, the National Family Health Survey (2015-16) showed that the percentage of rural women with anaemia and lower body-mass index in Jharkhand was higher than the national average. To enrich villagers’ diet and make it more nutritious in a cost-effective manner, reviving traditional kitchen gardens appears to be the best option.