-- South Asia Media Net, August 26, 2005

MUMBAI: The Vilasrao Deshmukh government on Thursday admitted that 2,675 children died of malnutrition between April and July this year in five districts of Maharashtra — Thane, Nandurbar, Nashik, Amravati, and Gadchiroli. These figures were produced before the Bombay high court by the state health department on Thursday afternoon.

A Bombay high court bench comprising Chief Justice Dalveer Bhandari and Justice Dhananjay Chandrachud, appreciating the government’s role in bringing down the death toll, said, "The government is doing a good job but not on a war footing."

It also advised the government to ensure coordination between the health and child welfare departments. The death toll in the same districts in the previous year, between April and July, was 3,026. The court had on Wednesday asked the state health department to file a detailed report regarding the malnutrition deaths in the five tribal districts of Maharashtra after counsel for businessman Kiran Paturkar had filed the original petition alleging 2,000 deaths from malnutrition due to government negligence.

The report submitted to the court by the health department says that between April and July this year, 1,085 infants not more than one year of age died due to malnutrition. It said 1,590 children in the age group of one to six years also died. It said 2,860 children fall under grade three (those who are serious) and 407 children are in critical condition. The court has ordered the government to submit on Friday the action plan that it will implement to ensure deaths due to malnutrition do not recur. It has ordered the government to provide details of Ang-anwadi workers. The court has also told the government to inform it if there is a shortage of Anganwadi employees so that the court can direct the government accordingly.