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tter Vol. 3, Issue 1&2
Chair for Sustainable Development, IGNOU
CHANGE
CSDnews
Sustainable Development in Action
June 2010
Defining Food Security for the Nation
Chair for Sustainable Development, IGNOU organized
the launching ceremony of book "Science and
Sustainable Food Security" written by
Prof. M.S. Swaminathan. Addressing the audience,
during the launch of his book Prof. Swaminathan
emphasized the importance of food security in
controlling the malnutrition in India.
He emphasized the importance of food security and
discussed the issues related to it. The country faces a
formidable task on food production, and there is a need
to implement recommendations of the National
Commission of Farmers (NCF). These provide a
roadmap to strengthen the ecological-economic
foundations for sustainable advances in productivity and
production and impart an income orientation to farming,
helping bridge the gap between potential and actual
yields and income in farming systems. The NCF has
urged the spread of conservation and climate-resilient
CSDnews 1 June 2010
“INSPIRING
ENHANCING VALUE”
Volume 3, Issue 1&2
farming. A conservation-cultivation-consumption-
commerce chain should be promoted in every block.
This will call for technical and skill upgradation of
farming practices, and IGNOU should play a proactive
role in it. The country has to shift from viewing food
security at the aggregate level to ensuring nutrition-
security at the level of each individual. A sustainable
food security system can be developed only with home-
grown food, not imports.
He added that there is much to learn from the past in
terms of the ecological and social sustainability of
technologies. At the same time, new developments have
opened up new opportunities for developing
technologies which can lead to higher productivity
without adverse impact on natural resource base.
Blending traditional and frontier technologies leads to
the birth of eco-technologies with combined strengths in

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economics, ecology, social and gender equity,
employment generation and energy conservation. He
also reiterated “that our country was facing many
challenges - primarily among them is the land, which has
become a shrinking resource for agriculture. We can't
even think of sustainable development without
preserving our water, climate and biodiversity. Scientists
have a great role to play in this, especially in the use of
appropriate technology for enhancing the environment.
They should not just predict, but shape the future".
Prof. Swaminathan announced the launch of eight new
programmes by CSD, IGNOU. These include
programmes on Sustainability Science, Climate Change,
Population and Sustainable Development, Biodiversity,
Wetland Management, Sustainable Management of
Ganga, Himalayan Ecosystem and Sustainability Audit.
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nutrition; food security and education, the rest of the
things will automatically fall into place. Any country
which has focused on these three has become
empowered. This was the main rationale for starting the
Chair for Sustainable Development in 2007, under the
able leadership of Prof. Swaminathan."
The book ‘Science and Sustainable Food Security' is
dedicated to Dr. Norman Borlaug; who along with
Swaminathan was at the forefront of the scientific
achievements that led to the Green Revolution, which
provides a roadmap for achieving sustainable
agricultural advance and food security in an era of
climate change and global economic meltdown.
The book showcases a number of methods of linking
ecological security with livelihood security, and provides
a scientific basis for entering an era of bio-happiness
based on the sustainable and equitable use of
biodiversity. It also describes the methods of adaptation
to the impact of global warming.
Through the Chair for Sustainable Development,
IGNOU is disseminating awareness and information to a
wide spectrum of scientists, environmentalists,
administrators, social scientists, policy makers and
enlightened corporate sectors on the urgent need to put
sustainability in the centre of all their endeavors.

*****
Honorable Vice Chancellor, IGNOU, There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but
Prof. V.N. Rajasekharan Pillai in his deliberations not for man's greed – M K Gandhi
commented that, "The country needs to focus on

Editorial

Prof. M.S. Swaminathan released the book “Science and issue inferences that the global and Indian evidence
Sustainable Food Security” which is authored by him at indicates that high level leadership is needed in order to
a time when the Government is at the preparatory stage make major improvements in nutrition, health and
of introducing a bill on “National Food Security”. He development areas.
reflected upon issues related to Food Security and
advocated for implementation of recommendations of The second article on “Sustainable Development of
the NCF, and urged for climate-resilient farming. A Groundwater resources in India” reveals that due to
sustainable food security system can be developed only highly variable nature of climate, groundwater has
with home grown food, not imports. The book provides a become a popular alternative source for irrigation and
roadmap for achieving sustainable agricultural advance domestic water use across India. To reserve the
groundwater resources for current and future generation
and food security in an era of climate change and global
economic meltdown. sustainable groundwater management should be given
more stress and proactive measures to be initiated to
The article on “Nutrition Security and Sustainable cope up with the potential impacts of climate change.
Development” once again reminds us about the nutrition There is an immediate need to open more dialogue and
for survival, health and development for current and bring more awareness amongst the masses on this.
succeeding generations of a nation. The article in the

CSDnews 2 June 2010

 Newsle
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Apart from the above, our “Green News” column deals Looking for your valuable suggestions and
with the aspects of 1) Rise in Carbon Emissions, 2) More feedback on this issue.
birds in list of threatened species, reveals new study, 3)
*****
shrinking glaciers to spark food crisis.
When we heal the earth, we heal ourselves - David Orr

Reader's view
Dear Sir, me. I further would like to add a few points which I
think might be useful for you. I would like to add that if
This is to acknowledge with thanks the receipt of your possible please add a database of alumni so that there
letter dated 02.05.2010 enclosing therewith a copy of can be a network that can be formed by the
your recent publication of Volume 2 and Issue 4 of networking opportunities. Furthermore a few more write
“CSD News”. I have gone through this and found it very ups and pictures would certainly be appreciated.
informative and useful.
Sincerely,
With warm regards
Your Environmental Friend,
Yours sincerely Nisheeth Srivastava
Prof. S.K.Thorat Program Director
Chairman Green Zone Conservation Society
University Grants Commission C-222,Lohia Nagar,
Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg Ghaziabad-NCR, Delhi, India
New Delhi - 110002 Email:www.unitedgreenzones.com
nisheeth@unitedgreenzones.com
*****
Dear Sir, *****
Dear Sir,
Thank you very much for sending CSD News. I found it
interesting and full of good ideas. I was struck First of all, I wish to convey my hearty congradulations
particularly by your quote from Mahatma Gandhi "There to Prof. P.C.Kesavan for having been conferred the
is no way to peace: Peace is the way". That is how I prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award for
understand your Figure 2 : the arrows not meaning a 2008-09.
casual relationship, let alone a necessary sequence of CDS news is truly educational and informative news
events, but rather the way in which the items in the letter on sustainable development. I am very happy to
figure might fit together under the conditions of peace. understand through the news letter that IGNOU and
At the same time the quote should not make one forget MSSRF have jointly started Coastal Community College
that currently we are not in a state of peace, and thus to impart knowledge pertaining to the coastal areas to the
how to get there is a serious problem. fishing community. I am sure, this will go a long way in
the knowledge empowerment of the fishers.
All the best The article written by Prof. G A Nair has related peace
Sincerely, and nonviolence to sustainable development very well.
Professor K. Kortmulder, Compilation of important international observances in
Former Head of Ethology Division, the months of October, November and December of the
Dept of Biological Sciences, year 2010 in the “Do You Know” section of the news
University of Leiden, letter is valuable.
The Netherlands I enjoyed reading it. Thank you so much for sending the
Email:K.Kortmulder@kpnplanet.nl same.

***** With kind regards,

Dear Sir, Ramesh, A.M
#523/41, III Cross, 10th Main,

CSDnews 3 June 2010


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Karnataka
Email: ramesh.aquatic@gmail.com
*****
Dear Sir
I was glad to read the copy of CSD News which you
kindly sent me. I found the article on “Peace, non-
violence and sustainable development” pleasant and
Nutrition Security and Sustainable Development
ARTICLE
Shashi Prabha Gupta *
*Nutrition Consultant, Former Technical Adviser (Food and Nutrition Board), Ministry of Women and Child
Development, Government of India
Nutrition is an essential input as well as a key indicator
of development. While good nutrition is the material
basis for human resource development of a country,
nutritional indices are important indicators of national
development. According to Prof. Amartya Sen,
prevalence of underweight in children under 5 years is
the most sensitive indicator of development.
Nutrition and Health
Nutrition is an issue of survival, health and development
for current and succeeding generations. Nutrition and
health are two sides of the same coin. Good health is the
ultimate objective of nutrition and nutrition is a vital
component of health. Recent scientific evidence reveals
that foetal and early childhood nutrition impacts the
health and development of human beings throughout
their life span. Children born under-weight have
impaired immune function and increased risk of diseases
such as diabetes and heart disease in their later life.
Malnourished children tend to have lower I.Q. and
impaired cognitive ability thus affecting their school
performance and then the productivity in their later life.
Such an important relationship between nutrition and
development is yet to be widely acknowledged to have
adequate influence in policy making.
Importance of Nutrition
It is rightly stated that the strength of a nation in 21st
century is determined not by its military force but by the
nutritional well being of its population. The nutritional
health of a population represents its national economic
asset. The achievement of national goals depends upon
it. The importance of nutrition for human resource
development, productivity of the population and
economic growth of a nation is increasingly being
recognized by economists all over the world. The
nutritional status of a community particularly of its
vulnerable groups comprising of infants and young
CSDnews 4 June 2010
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enlightening. I wonder how a scientist could write so
well on a human subject.
With kind regards and best wishes
Yours sincerely
Professor K.J. Jaleel
Formerly Vice Chancellor, Calicut University
E-mail: mail@safindia.org
*****
children, expectant and nursing mothers and elderly has
been recognized as an important indicator of national
development. The high levels of malnutrition
particularly among children and women are directly or
indirectly associated with high morbidity and mortality
rates such as infant mortality rate, mortality under-5
years, maternal mortality rate, and life expectancy at
birth – all of which are indicators used for measuring the
development of a country in the present age. The
problem of malnutrition has, therefore, to be seen in a
proper perspective. It is only in recent years that the
problem of malnutrition has gone beyond the fields of
public health and welfare services and has assumed a
wider dimension. Possibly for the first time the dangers
of malnutrition have now been accepted as definite
impediments in the national development of the country.
In fact, it is now accepted at the highest policy-making
level that the effects of malnutrition are so widespread
and having tentacles on every sphere of human life that
all efforts for total economic development will bear no
fruit if the menace of malnutrition continues unabated. It
would be unwise to consider the problem as just the
sufferings of certain segments of the population in
certain regions of the country from the effects of
nutritional deficiencies. The problem is much deeper
needing consideration in a very much wider sphere. The
real question is how far malnutrition is a drain on the
economic resources of a nation and how these can be
plugged to achieve the desired development goals. In
fact, nutrition and health are now accepted as important
parameters of development.
Millennium Development Goals
At the United Nations Millennium Summit in September
2000, world leaders placed development at the heart of
the global agenda by adopting the Millennium
Development Goals (MDG). The Goals set clear targets
for reducing poverty, hunger, illiteracy, disease,
 Newsle
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discrimination against women and environmental access to foods that are nutritionally adequate and safe,
degradation by 2015. Out of the eight Millennium people must have:
Development Goals, nutrition is crucial for the • Sufficient knowledge and skills to acquire, prepare and
achievement of the first six, namely: consume a nutritionally adequate diet, including those to
 Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. meet the needs of young children;
 Achieve universal primary education. • Access to health services and a healthy environment to
 Promote gender equality and empower ensure effective biological utilisation of the foods
women. consumed; and
 Reduce child mortality. • Time and motivation to make the best use of their
 Improve maternal health. resources to provide adequate family /household care
and feeding practices” (FAO, 2000)
 Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other
An individual’s actual nutritional status is thus
diseases.
determined by a number of interrelated factors, of which
Economic growth alone is unlikely to be
food security is only one. The term ‘nutrition security’ is
sufficient to significantly lower the prevalence of
used to describe the condition of having access to all the
malnutrition – it will certainly not be sufficient to meet
food, health, social, economic and environmental factors
the MDG target of halving the prevalence of
necessary to achieve nutritional well-being, in
underweight children between 1990 and 2015. Only by
accordance with the prevailing cultural context .
rapidly scaling up health, nutrition, education, and
However, it needs to be reiterated that attaining food
infrastructure interventions and improving their
security in terms of just physical and economic access to
effectiveness can this target be met.
food is a necessary condition for attaining the more
National strategies for the Millennium Development
holistic state of food security that subsumes nutrition
Goals must include a commitment to women’s right to
security.
education, reproductive health services, property
The definition of food and nutrition security derived by
ownership, secure tenure and labour force participation.
the FAO in the Rome Declaration on World Food
Empowerment of women in particular to make decisions
Security in 1996, states that food security exists when
relating to food, nutrition and feeding practices is
“all people at all times have physical and economic
extremely important for achieving the goal of sustainable
access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their
development
dietary needs and food preferences for an active and
Nutrition Security
healthy life”.
The FAO in 1983 stated that food security means
Today, the Nutrition Security is broadly defined as
“ensuring that all people at all times have both physical
“physical, economic and social access to, and utilization
and economic access to the basic food they need”. The
of, an appropriate, balanced diet, safe drinking water,
World Bank (WB) took this definition forward in 1986
environmental hygiene, and primary health care for all”.
to assert that, food security is “access by all people at all
The following three aspects underlie most
times to enough food for an active and healthy life”.
conceptualisations of food and nutrition insecurity –
Today, food security concerns include not only the
• Availability – the physical availability of food
problems of physical availability of food stocks as well
stocks in desired quantities, which is a function of
as economic and physical access to food stocks, but also
domestic production, changes in stocks and imports as
biological utilisation of food consumed. That is,
well as the distribution of food across territories.
environmental conditions such as availability or
• Access – determined by the bundle of
otherwise of safe drinking water and sanitation as well as
entitlements, i.e., related to people’s initial endowments,
nutrition practices and knowledge that can help or hinder
what they can acquire (especially in terms of physical
the absorption of food into the body form part of the
and economic access to food) and the opportunities open
more inclusive contemporary conception of food
to them to achieve entitlement sets with enough food
security.
either through their own endeavours or through State
In the 1990s, there were significant efforts to define and
intervention or both.
identify the nutritional requirements of people as well as
• Absorption – defined as the ability to
emphasis on the importance of a balanced nutritious diet
biologically utilise the food consumed. This is in turn,
in ensuring overall food security. One of the most
related to several factors such as nutrition knowledge
important observations of the nutrition security debate
and practices, stable and sanitary physical and
has been that, “people’s food security (i.e. their physical
environmental conditions to allow for effective
and economic access to nutritionally adequate food) does
biological absorption of food and health status.
not automatically translate into their nutritional
wellbeing. Nutritional disorders, including
Role of Food and Non-Food Factors
undernourishment, do not necessarily disappear once
The problem of malnutrition is no longer considered a
food security has been achieved. In addition to having
result of food deficiency or as a health problem but

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recognized as a multi-faceted problem interfering with
all efforts for development of human resources. A
striking feature in the manifestation of malnutrition is
the convergence phenomenon, convergence of poverty
and unemployment, of disease and illiteracy, of rapid
population growth and of environmental degradation.
These in turn are linked to cultural factors, economic
distortions, human inequities and social injustices. The
determinants of malnutrition are, therefore, many –
including besides the food factors, the non-food factors
also such as health care, hygiene, environmental
sanitation etc. which have an important bearing on the
nutritional status of the people. Increased food
production is a necessary condition but not sufficient in
itself to ensure nutrition for all.
The role of non-food factors is just as important, e.g.
“immunization” breaks the dangerous partnership
between malnutrition and infection while family
planning enhances the nutritional well-being of families.
Supplementary feeding of children suffering from
diarrhoea or an infectious disease will not have any
benefit on their nutritional status unless the child is
treated for diarrhoea or the infectious disease. There is
increased loss of nutrients from the body during
infection/ diarrhoea. Similarly, sound storage practices at
the village level to minimize post harvest losses of food
grains, sound infant feeding and child caring practices
are equally important non-food factors for nutrition
promotion of the people.
Malnutrition is a multi-faceted problem having tentacles
on different spheres of human life. Low food
consumption, poor caring practices, poor sanitary and
environmental conditions and restricted access to health
services contribute to malnutrition which in turn
adversely impacts on physical and cognitive
development of children, school performance, work
output, returns on investment in education resulting in
poverty, low productivity and low income as illustrated
in Fig. 1. Thus, malnutrition and poverty make a vicious
cycle which demands a frontal attack on malnutrition for
eradicating poverty.
Achieving food security for all, reducing the number of
under-nourished people to half by 2015 and meeting the
basic nutritional needs of the people are the three planks
of the Rome Declaration on World Food Summit, 1996.
Incidentally, all the three goals are common to the
mandates advocated by the National Nutrition
Policy(1993) and the National Plan of Action of
Nutrition (1995) adopted by the Government of India..
Looking into the various causes of food insecurity and
the vulnerable population affected by it, it would not be
wrong to say that the policies and programmes of all
development sectors should aim at achieving food
security for the people, particularly for the vulnerable
segments, namely women and children.
Malnutrition being a multi-faceted problem requires
inputs in various areas namely agriculture including
CSDnews 6 June 2010
Malnut Newsle
Fig 1: (Source: Adopted from FAO, 1999, Field Programme Management)
horticulture, public distribution of food, food processing,
health and family welfare, education, rural and urban
development, panchayati raj, information and
broadcasting, tribal affairs, social justice and
empowerment, women and child development, public
private partnership, nutrition surveillance, nutrition of
tribals etc. Making nutritional outcome an explicit
objective of each of the concerned sectors holds promise
for accelerated reduction in malnutrition levels. The
global and Indian evidence indicates that high level
leadership is needed in order to make major
improvements in nutrition, health and development
areas. In addition, only a high level inter-agency
coordination mechanism can help integrate nutritional
concerns in sectoral policies and programmes.
The successive Five Year Plans of the country
particularly the Ninth, the Tenth and the Eleventh Five
Year Plans have given high importance to achieving
food and nutrition security in the country. There is a
separate chapter on Food and Nutrition security in the
Low Incom
Plan documents which covers mandate for the nutrition
sector. A number of nutrition related programmes are
being implemented by different sectors of the Govt. like
the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), Mid
Day Meal (MDM) scheme, Public Distribution System
of Food (PDS) etc. This is enough testimony to the fact
that India is totally committed to achieving food and
nutrition security for its people.
A continuous education of public for nutrition
promotion is required. Investment in nutrition would
need to be viewed as investment for human resource
development, higher economic productivity, food and
nutrition security and national development.
Low Produc
Sustainable Development
A well nourished, healthy workforce is a precondition
for sustainable development. At the same time, the
nutritional well being of a population is a reflection of
the performance of its social an economic sectors; and to
a large extent, an indicator of the efficiency of national
resource allocation.
In order for a national social and economic development
programme to be successful and sustainable, the majority
of the population should be able to participate in the

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process. Therefore, the majority of the population
should be in good health and have good nutritional
status.
Malnutrition undermines investments in education,
health and other development sectors. When human
potential and resources are trapped in the vicious cycle
of malnutrition, development goals and improved
standards of living will not be realized.
Sustainable development is one where people are
empowered to take care of their nutrition and health so
that they are productive, free from physical and mental
ailments and are contributing to the socioeconomic
development of the nation.
Investing in human development needs to be bolstered
by much larger donor contributions even before
economic growth takes hold. Because better health and
education are both goals of human development and
precursors to sustained growth, investments in these
areas are important for a later take off in private
activities. Supported by additional donor resources,
public investments can make major progress in health,
population, nutrition, education and water and sanitation.
The needed technologies are well known and well
proven. Thus big gains in health and education can - and
should - be achieved well before per capita income rise
substantially. A graph on Economic Growth vs Infant
Survival given below reveals that income growth is no
guarantee to improve health indicators like infant
survival, and hence, investment in nutrition and health
must receive priority without waiting for the economic
growth.
The ‘Report on the State of Food Insecurity in Rural
India’ brought out by the M.S. Swaminathan Research
Foundation, Centre for Research on Sustainable
Agriculture and Rural Development and the World Food
Programme, the Food Aid Organization of the United
Nations in December, 2008 has identified 7 indicators
for assessing food Insecurity. These are:
 % population consuming <1890 Kcal / cu /
diem
 % ever married women (15-49years) who are
Anaemic
 %households without Access to Safe Drinking
Water
 % Women (15-49 years) with Chronic Energy
deficiency
 % Households without Toilets within the
Premises
 % Children (6-35 Months) who are Anaemic
 % Children (6-35 Months) who are stunted
Sustainable development requires meeting the major
needs of all and extending to all the opportunity to
satisfy their aspirations for a better life.
From the foregoing it is apparent that nutrition indicators
would be the most appropriate indicators for sustainable
CSDnews 7 June 2010
Income Growth vs. Infant
1353
Survival Newsle 1 0 8 0 0
10254
10067 1 0 3 0 0
9647
O
9242
9 8 0 0
9007 9 3 0 0
8489
8 8 0 0
8070
8 3 0 0
7690
7321 7212 7433
7 8 0 0
7 3 0 0
920 920 921 926 926 926 928 929 928 930 932
853 6 8 0 0
19901991199219931994199519961997199819992000
Infant survival (Number reaching the age of one per
1,000 live births )
Income (per ca pita income in Rs)
(Source: Selected Socio –economic Statistics, India 2001 and Sample)
Registration System
Development. The following flow chart further
illustrates it.
‘Nutrition’ as a National Development Agenda
Recognizing the important link between nutrition
security and sustainable development, it is imperative
that malnutrition is articulated as a national problem and
nutrition is made an important part of national agenda. It
needs to be made visible at all levels of Government and
Cognit
society. One of the important reasons for neglect or
inadequate attention to the problem of malnutrition is the
“invisibility of malnutrition”. Unlike communicable
diseases like cholera, typhoid, malaria, tuberculosis,
measles etc., which have a dramatic appearance and get
immediate attention of all, the onset of malnutrition is
slow and insidious and the state of malnutrition has to be
told to the people by the clinicians. Often malnourished
children succumb to various diseases and only at the
time of treatment of diseases it is realized that the child
is malnourished. Because of the invisible nature of
malnutrition there is no demand from the community for
its prevention or control. Hence, the problem of
malnutrition has to be made visible to the people as well
as to the professionals and implementers of various
nutrition, health and welfare programmes so that due
attention is given at the early stages and the problem is
not allowed to go beyond the stage of repair. Most
micronutrient deficiencies are designated as “hidden
hunger”.
Malnutrition must be recognized as an impediment to
national development at the highest policy making with
time bound objectives must be launched. It must also be
emphasized before the top planners and financial
managers of the Government that the present
malnutrition rates in the country have adverse outcomes,
and cause leakage into different programmes such as
health, education, industrial production, agriculture,
level. It is also imperative that a Comprehensive
National Nutrition Programme to eradicate malnutrition,
and sum total of GDP.

tter Vol. 3, Issue 1&2
It may be desirable to highlight the importance of
nutrition through constitution of a ‘Cabinet Committee
on Food and Nutrition”. A high level Standing Inter
Agency Coordination Mechanism at national and state
levels is essential to direct macro and micro level
strategies to the concerned partners of development in
the country. A close and systematic collaboration
between different ministries implementing
developmental programmes, public and private sector,
national and international organizations is required for
meaningful implementation of various strategies
identified for nutrition promotion.
The existence of such high level structure at the national
level would provide an enabling mechanism for
integration of nutritional concerns in developmental
planning and programming. These structures could be
supported by inter-ministerial coordination committees,
task forces, steering committees, working groups etc.
Nutrition being a multi sectoral issue, it is imperative to
introduce nutritional considerations and concerns in
sectoral policies and programmes. In other words,
nutrition is to be made an explicit objective of various
developmental programmes of the country if nutritional
outcome is to be maximized. The intersectoral
coordination mechanism at different levels would help
coordinate activities of different sectors of the
Government, such as health, agriculture, horticulture,
socio-economic development, development of
vulnerable groups like women and children etc, related
to nutrition and health of the population with special
reference to the vulnerable groups.
The need for planning for nutrition cannot be
overemphasized. It is necessary to update the National
Nutrition Policy and publish the same after seeking
approval of the Cabinet. Besides there should be a major
section in the Five Year Plan documents devoted to
nutrition.
Nutrition being critical to national development, public
expenditure in the area of nutrition should be viewed as
an investment for future. Better nutritional status of the
population is bound to result in optimal development of
human resources, higher productivity and faster
economic growth. Once this is achieved, investment in
nutrition would not be necessary. It is, therefore, of
prime importance to mobilize resources for this
important social sector programme at least for the next
ten years. Incentives to the corporate sector for
contributing to this important cause could also be
considered.
A vigorous awareness campaign on malnutrition to reach
all sections of society starting from policy makers down
to the village level functionaries and the public is one of
the most critical nutrition intervention required for the
long term solution to the problem of malnutrition.
Advocacy and sensitization of the policy makers towards
the magnitude of the problem of malnutrition, its
consequences on productivity, economic growth and
CSDnews 8 June 2010
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national development and the need for undertaking a
multi-sectoral approach for controlling this widespread
problem is an essential link for articulating malnutrition
as a national problem. Maternal malnutrition
perpetuating an inter-generational cycle of malnutrition
needs to be explained to the policy makers so that due
attention is accorded to ensuring the nutrition of the girl
child, the adolescent girls, all pregnant and lactating
women, infants and young children. A national
programme for nutrition advocacy, awareness generation
and capacity building needs to be implemented.
The nutritional well being of the people is a pre-
condition for the development of societies and it should
be a key objective of progress in human development. It
must be at the centre of all socio-economic development
plans and strategies. Success is dependent on fostering
the participation of the people and the community and
multi sectoral actions at all levels, taking into account
their long-term effects. Short-term measures to improve
nutritional well-being may need to be initiated or
strengthened to complement the benefits resulting from
long-term development efforts. Thus, a series of action
in different spheres are required for addressing the
problem of malnutrition in the country.
The cutting edge of various developmental programmes
is at the State level. It is, therefore, important to have
involvement of States in planning and execution of
nutrition interventions with adequate flexibility. The
Central Authority should lay down broad policies for
planning and coordinate strategies for improving the
nutrition of the people. But the actual micro level
planning and execution of nutrition interventions and
developmental programmes has to be undertaken by the
States. The State authority can translate the broad
National Policies in terms of their practical
implementation with such modification necessary to suit
the regional and local needs. They should be given full
authority to set-up their own implementation strategies
since States differ in developmental indices and
population nutrition profile. Certain goals could be set
in terms of indicators of nutrition, social, health and
economic development profile of the States population
like IMR, prevalence of nutritional deficiencies, birth
weight of infants, BMI of adolescents and adults,
anaemia prevalence, maternal mortality rate etc, to be
achieved. The achievements of each State can be judged
at the end of specific time frame.
Community participation has an essential role in the
implementation and support of nutritional plans and
interventions. Communities need to be involved in
implementing and monitoring nutrition interventions, to
bring additional resources to the centres, improve the
quality of service delivery, and increase accountability in
the system.
Let us accelerate the pace of national development by
improving nutrition.
 Newsle
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*****

Modern technology
Owes ecology
An apology- Alan M. Eddison

CSDnews 9 June 2010

 Newsle
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Green News

Compiled by:

OUR
M.K. Salooja, CSD, IGNOU

58 Percent Rise in Carbon Emissions

OVER 16 YEARS Biggest culprit is coal fired power
sector, says report.

NEW DELHI: In a span of 16 years, India’s climate

change causing green house gas emissions have
increased by 58 per cent and the biggest contributor has
been coal fired power sector, a government report
Electricity 37.8
released on Tuesday said. 28.4
The footprint of India’s growth story was visible with
emissions increasing to 1.7 billion tonnes in 2007 from Transport 6.4
7.5
1.2 billion tonnes in 1994, confirming India being among

This is h
the world’s five biggest carbon polluters.China is the Residential 7.2
world’s top emitter of greenhouse gases blamed for 6.3
heating up the planet. The United States is second. 5.3
The amount of carbon emissions India added to Other energy 6.3
the atmosphere between 1994 and 2007 was equal to Iron and 2007
what Australia emits every year. That meant that India’s 6.2
Steel 7.2 1994
per capita emission remained 10 times less than

emission
Australia that was 1.5 tonnes per person. Other 8.7
“India is till not using its emission space,” Planning industry 10
Commission Deputy chairperson Montek Singh 17.6
Agriculture 27.6
Ahluwalia said. “Cut off is two tonnes per capita and we
a still below that.”
Waste 3
Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh said 1.9
the study would be used in the global climate
negotiations to propagate India’s stand of global treaty 0 20 40
based on per capita.
Thank half of rural India without electricity for low per
capita as the study ‘Green House Gas Emissions 2007’
suggested that the emissions transport sector (mostly in While unveiling the report, Ramesh said India would
urban areas) and growing electricity demand (in urban launch a satellite to monitor carbon emissions by 2013.
area) has increased the most. “We have already spoke to Indian Space Research
The power sector accounted for 719.30 million tonnes of Organization in this regard,” he said.
emissions against 355.03 million tonnes in 1994, while
the transport sector’s share jumped to 142.04 million
tonnes from 80.28 million tonnes during the same [Source: Hindustan Times, New Delhi, Wednesday,
period. May 12, 2010, Nation/Page No. 15]
Even though India’s agriculture production has
increased, the study, described by the Ramesh as “most *****
updated in the world”, said its share in total emissions

dipped by around 10 per cent.
Of the total emissions in 2007, 74 per cent was carbon
dioxide, 22 per cent was methane, which caused climate
change 21 times more than and remaining was nitrogen
dioxide.
Total em
More Birds in List of Threatened Species,
Reveals New Study
Recent studies by BirdLife International and Bombay
Natural History Society have revealed that the list of

(MT)
CSDnews 10 June 2010

tter Vol. 3, Issue 1&2
threatened bird species in the country has risen from 149
in 2008 to 154 now.
Destruction of habitat is the prime reason for all these
disappearing species. According to BirdLife Studies in
Asia, the condition of Great Slaty Woodpecker has
deteriorated from “least concern” to “vulnerable” while
that of Rufous-backed Bunting has deteriorated from
“vulnerable” to “Endangered”.
Commenting on the decline in bird numbers, BNHS
director Dr. Asad Rahmani said: “it is extremely
alarming that almost 13 per cent of the world’s birds are
critically endangered or vulnerable. Great Slaty
Woodpecker is an addition from India into the
vulnerable category, primarily due to habitat loss. The
fact that now 154 bird species from India are threatened
as against 149 some time back is indicator of further
deretoration of the environment”.
Dr. Rahmani added that supposedly common species in
India like Nilgiri Blue Robin have been included in the
endangered category. Himalayan quail and Pink-headed
Duck are considered extinct in India since they have not
been seen for nearly 100 years. But as there is still hope
to rediscover these birds, they have been included in the
critically endangered category.
BNHS and Indian Bird Conservation network have been
working on several critically endangered species
including Bengal Florican, Jerdon’s Courser, Sociable
Lapwing, Forest Owlet and four species of vultures.
Dr. Rahmani, who has been working on the Great Indian
Bustard for 30 years, noted that the Bustard is among the
16 endangered species in India and is very likely to
become critically endangered soon, unless concrete steps
are taken for the protection of its habitat.
In light of the alarming situation of several bird species
in India, BNHA has strongly urged the Indian
Government to start special programmes for the
protection of birds and their habitats. BNHS has
identified 466 important bird areas across India which
are crucial bird habitats. At present 200 among them are
not officially protected.
A release issued by the BNHS noted that all such areas
should be protected and the local communities involved
in such conservation measures in manner that is becomes
a win-win situation for all with a sustainable
development model.
Destruction of habitat is the prime reason for
disappearance
[Source: The Hindu; Friday, May 28, 2010.]
*****
Scientists for the most part agree glaciers are melting at
Shrinking Glaciers to Spark Food Crisis an accelerated rate as temperatures increase. Most
• Scientists claim that 60 million people living scientists tie that warming directly to higher atmospheric
around the Himalayas will suffer food concentrations of greenhouse gases such as carbon
shortages in the coming decades. dioxide.
CSDnews 11 June 2010
Newsle
• Scientists for the most part agree glaciers are
melting at an accelerated rate as
temperatures increase.
• Most scientists tie that warming directly to
higher atmospheric concentrations of
greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide.
• Some glaciers, such as in the Himalayas,
could hold out for centuries in a warmer
world.
But more than 90 per cent of glaciers worldwide are
in retreat.
Nearly 60 million people living around the Himalayas
will suffer food shortages in the coming decades as
glaciers shrink and the water sources for crops dry up, a
study said on Thursday.
But Dutch scientist writing in the journal Science
councluded the impact would be much less than
previously extimated a few years ago by the United
Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The UN report in 2007 warned that hundred of millions
of people were at risk from disappearing glaciers.
The reason for the discrepancy, scientists said, is that
some basins surrounding the Himalayas depend more
rainfall than melting glaciers for their water sources.
Those that do count heavily on glaciers, like the Indus,
Ganges and Brahmaputra basin in South Asia could see
their water supplies decline by as much as 19.6 per cent
by 2005.
China’s Yellow River basin, in contrast, would see a 9.5
per cent increase precipitation as monsson patterns
change due to changing climate.
The study is one of the first to examine the impact of
shrinking glaciers on the Himalayan river basins.
It will likely further fuel the debate on the degree that
climate change will devastate the river basins that are
mostly located in India, Pakistan Nepal, Bangladesh,
Bhutan and China.
 Newsle
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[Source: Hindustan Times, New Delhi; Saturday,

June12, 2010; Page No. 17]

*****
If civilization has risen from the Stone Age, it can
rise again from the Wastepaper Age - Jacques
Barzun

CSDnews 12 June 2010

 Newsle
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CSDnews 13 June 2010


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Sustainable Development of Groundwater Resources in India
ARTICLE
M. Prashanth*
*Chair for Sustainable Development
Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU)
Introduction
Groundwater is the most important source of domestic,
industrial, and agricultural water and is also a finite
resource. Population growth has created an
unprecedented demand for water, with the situation most
critical in the developing world, especially countries like
India where several million people depend on
groundwater for drinking and agriculture purposes. India
is the largest groundwater user in the world, with an
estimated usage of around 230 cubic kilometers per year,
more than a quarter of the global total. With more than
60 percent of irrigated agriculture and 85 percent of
drinking water supplies dependent on it, groundwater is
a vital resource for rural areas in India. Due to the highly
variable nature of the climate, groundwater has become a
popular alternative for irrigation and domestic water use
across India. Dependence on groundwater resources is
particularly strong where dry season surface water levels
are low or where wet season flows are too disruptive to
be easily tapped. In addition to being accessible,
groundwater quality is generally excellent in most areas
and presents a relatively safe source of drinking water
for Indians in rural and urban centers. Reliance of urban
and industrial waste supplies on groundwater is also
becoming increasingly significant in India. Through the
construction of millions of private wells, there has been a
phenomenal growth in the over exploitation of
groundwater in the last five decades.
Despite the significance of groundwater for sustainable
development it has not always been properly managed
which resulted in depletion and degradation of the
resource. In addition to these existing challenges,
groundwater management faces a new challenge of
confronting the negative impacts of climate change.
Groundwater overexploitation has a series of
consequences, such as increasing water cost,
environmental changes (affects on wetlands, salinity
problems, etc), reduction of other water sources already
in use, water salinization and impairment of quality due
to impacts of climate change. To reserve the
groundwater resource for current and future generations,
CSDnews 14 June 2010
Newsle
sustainable groundwater management should be given
more stress and proactive measures to be initiated to
cope up with the potential impacts of climate change.
Availability of Groundwater in India
Availability of groundwater is widely variable across the
country with changes in topography, subsurface geology
and the prevailing climate in the region. In general the
great Himalayan ranges in the north act as rainshed
divide ushering rainfall in the Indian plains making a
important source of groundwater in the country. The
mountains and hilly regions in the north and west do not
allow adequate infiltration and a consequence
groundwater is mostly limited to valleys and other lower
lying areas.
The Indo-Gangetic alluvium forms the most
productive and extensive multi-aquifer system in India
with tube wells yielding 24 to 75 liters per second (lps).
Semi-consolidated formations with moderate
groundwater yield occur in narrow valleys or structurally
faulted basins in the belts fringing the peninsular region
adjacent to the Ganga plain, Narmada and Tapi valleys,
coastal belt and in parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat and also
parts of the northeastern region. Open wells in these
sedimentary formations have yield in the range 1–5 lps.
Basalt lava flows of the Deccan Traps in Central India in
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have usually
poor to moderate potential. Dug wells and dug-cum-
borewells are the most common groundwater structures
generally yielding between 1 and 20 lps.
Peninsular India is mostly characterized with
consolidated formations like granites–gneisses and other
igneous and metamorphic rock assemblages.
Groundwater in these formations occurs in weathered
and fractured zones. Open wells generally record a yield
between 1 and 9 lps and borewells tapping deeper
fracture zones have occasionally recorded high yields, up
to 30 lps.
The coastal areas having thick alluvium
deposits form the prospective aquifer systems. Deep
tubewells tapping multi-aquifers in these tracts have
yield potential up to 60 lps. Groundwater development in
these coastal areas is, however, associated with the risk
of sea-water intrusion. Groundwater yield potentials in
different parts of the country are presented in (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Major aquifer systems of India.(source
CGWB)
 Newsle
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Balance grou
available for
Figure-2 Status of groundwater utilization in India as on
2004

S. N.

utilization
Name of the Basin Total
Replenishable
Ground
water
Resources
Ground water
Potential Available
for use

1. Brahmani with Baitarni 4.05 3.16

2. Brahmaputra 26.55 21.80

168 bcm
3. Chambal Composite 7.19 3.66
Unsustainable Groundwater Resource Exploitation 4. Cauvery 12.30 4.67
The total annual groundwater draft is 231 bcm (billion 5. Ganga 170.99 96.37
cubic meters), out of which 213 bcm is used for 6. Godavari 40.65 24.94
7. Indus 26.49 5.22
irrigation and 18 bcm is for domestic and industrial use.
8. Krishna 26.41 14.50
In general, the irrigation sector remains the main
9. Kutch & Saurashtra 11.23 4.64
consumer of groundwater (92% of total annual Composite
groundwater draft for all uses (Figure-2). 10. Madras and South Tamil 18.22 6.55
The overall stage of groundwater development Nadu
in the country is 58% and the ground water potential in 11. Mahanadi 16.46 13.02
river basins is represented in (Table-1).The stage of 12. Meghna 8.52 6.95
groundwater development is high in the states 13. Narmada 10.83 7.18
Delhi,Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan,and UT of Daman 14. Northeast 18.84 13.26
& Diu and Puducherry, where the overall stage of Composite
groundwater development is more than 100%. 15. Pennar 4.93 2.66
In the peninsular states of Andhra Pradesh, 16. Subarnarekha 1.82 1.40
Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, 17. Tapi 8.27 3.97
Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, the general scarcity of 18. Western Ghat 17.69 11.18
sustainable water supply has led to over-stress on the Total 431.43 245.13
groundwater regime. Since most of the area in this Table-1 Ground Water Potential in River Basins of India (Pro Rata
Basis) (Unit: km3/year)
region is occupied by hardrock terrains, limited
(Source: www.india.gov.in)
availability of groundwater has resulted in growing
number of over-exploited blocks/mandals/taluks. The
average stage of groundwater development in these Out of 5723 assessed administrative units
states is also high. Parts of Uttar Pradesh and (blocks/taluks/mandals/districts), 4078 are ‘safe’, 550
Uttarakhand also have high stage of groundwater are ‘semicritical’, 226 are ‘critical’, and 839 units are
development. ‘overexploited’. The areas of the remaining 30 units are
completely covered by saline groundwater. The number
of over-exploited and critical administrative units was
significantly higher (more than 15% of the total assessed

CSDnews 15 June 2010


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units) in Andhra Pradesh (where categorization was done
up to sub-unit level, i.e. within a mandal – command and
non-command-wise), Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana,
Karnataka, Punjab, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu, and also
the UTs of Daman & Diu and Puducherry.
Impacts of Climate Change on Groundwater
Climate change results in spatial and temporal changes
in precipitation, which significantly influences natural
recharge. We know little about how exactly rainfall
patterns will change, but increased temporal variability
seems guaranteed. There are intense and large rainfall
events in short monsoons followed by long dry spells.
Higher variability in precipitation thus negatively impact
natural recharge in general. The net impact on a given
location depends upon the change in both the total
precipitation and the variability of that precipitation.
The Indo-Gangetic aquifer system has been getting
heavy recharge from the Himalayan snow-melt. As
snow-melt-based run-off increases during the coming
decades, their contribution to potential recharge may
increase; however, a great deal of this may end up as
‘rejected recharge’ and enhance river flows and intensify
the flood proneness of eastern India and Bangladesh. As
the snow-melt-based run-off is declining, there is also a
decline in run-off as well as groundwater recharge in this
vast basin.
A major interplay of climate change and groundwater is
more witnessed in coastal areas. Using the records of
coastal tide gauges in the north Indian Ocean for more
than 40 years, it is estimated that a sea level rise between
1.06 and 1.75 mm per year, consistent with the 1–2 mm
per year global sea level rise estimates of IPCC.
Rising sea levels threatens coastal aquifers. Many of
India’s coastal aquifers are already experiencing salinity
ingress. This problem is particularly acute in Saurashtra
coast in Gujarat and Minjur aquifer in Tamil Nadu. In
coastal West Bengal, Sundarbans (mangrove forest) are
threatened by saline intrusion overland, affecting its
aquifers. The precarious balance between freshwater
aquifers and sea water leads to growing stress as sea
levels rise. Coastal aquifers are thus likely to face serious
threats from climate-change-induced sea level rise.
Some scientists have suggested that climate change will
alter the physical characteristics of aquifers themselves.
Higher CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere, they
argue, may influence carbonate dissolution and promote
the formation of carst which in turn may negatively
affect infiltration properties of topsoils. Many others
have argued the opposite. From experimental data, some
scientists have claimed that elevated atmospheric CO2
levels may affect plants, vadose zone and groundwater in
ways that may hasten infiltration from precipitation by
up to 119% in a Mediterranean climate to up to 500% in
a Sub-tropical climate.
CSDnews 16 June 2010
Newsle
Sustainable Management of Groundwater
For sustainable management of groundwater in India as
increasing number of aquifers are reaching unsustainable
levels of exploitation a host of practical interventions
which can be implemented in the present scenario are as
follows :
(a) Regulatory measures. Effective regulation requires
not only sound legislation but also the
administrative capacity to monitor and enforce rules.
(b) Economic instruments. Pricing measures,
including volumetric charges, taxes, and user fees,
can act as incentives to conservation and more
efficient allocation of water resources, provided they
address concerns of equity and affordability to the
poor.
(c) Tradable groundwater rights. While a well-
defined rights regime helps resource users to reach
optimal outcomes, the measure encounters the same
fundamental difficulty as for regulation and pricing
– the very high transaction costs of implementation.
(d) Community management of groundwater. The
key feature of community groundwater management
is that the resource user community instead of the
state is the primary custodian of groundwater and is
charged with implementing management measures.
Community groundwater management can involve
any mix of instruments, including regulation,
property rights, and pricing.
(e) Building capacity and adjusting the role of state
groundwater institutions. The capacity of state
groundwater institutions will need to be developed
to ensure that they can perform the key functions of
providing information and technical support,
enabling community management, and enforcing
regulatory measures.
(f) Promoting conjunctive use in agriculture. More
optimized conjunctive use through microzone
planning (for example, sealing bank embankments
and de-sedimentation of major canals) in the
irrigated canal command areas could increase the
cropping intensity without compromising
groundwater resource sustainability.
(g) Integrating groundwater in urban water supply
planning. There is a need to move from
opportunistic exploitation of groundwater resources
to more systematic evaluation of the status of urban
groundwater use and the contribution it can make to
meeting future demand.
(h) Technical and political solutions to agricultural
power pricing. The current situation of heavily
subsidized power in the agricultural sector is placing
a heavy financial burden on the state electricity
boards, and a politically pragmatic resolution of the
energy–groundwater nexus is important for ensuring
the viability and sustainability of both groundwater-
based agriculture and the power sector in India
 Newsle
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.*****
We never know the worth of water till the well is dry -
Thomas Fuller

Book Release
SCIENCE AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURITY
Selected Papers of M S Swaminathan

This book provides a roadmap for achieving sustainable agricultural

advance and food security in an era of climate change and global economic
melt-down. The contents include a description of the paradigm shift under
the leadership of the author, from a green to an ever-green revolution
necessary for advancing productivity in perpetuity without ecological harm.

Science and Sustainable Food Security shows many methods of linking

ecological security with livelihood security, and provides a scientific basis
for entering an era of biohappiness based on the sustainable and equitable
use of biodiversity. Also, methods of adaptation to the impact of global
warming are described. This book will prove invaluable to all interested in
• Hardback
sustainable human security and happiness.
: 436 pages
• Author/Editor : M S Swaminathan
Contents: • Year of Publication : 2010
• Publisher : IISc, Bangalore and World
• Food Security Scientific, Singapore
and Economic Development — How Science is
Applied to Solve Problems of Poverty, Drought and Famine
• Science and Food Security — How Science is Used to Generate
Efficient and Optimal Agricultural Outputs
• Food Security and Ecological Balance — How the Gains of
Green Revolution are Impacted by Climate Change, How Science
Will be Helpful in Ensuring Sustainable Food Security, Green
Revolution to Ever-Green Revolution — A Roadmap

Sustainability Related Seminars/Conferences/Workshops

Cities and their Growth: Sustainability and Fractality

5 to 6 August 2010,Poznañ, Poland

Website: http://www.geoconf.amu.edu.pl

RenewCon India 2010

26 to 27 August 2010,Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Website: http://www.renewcon-india.com/?
utm_campaign=EVENTCALENDAR&utm_medium=EVENTLISTING&utm_source=CONFERENCEALERTSCO
M

Auroville Green Practices Seminar

26 to 28 August 2010,Auroville, Tamil Nadu, India
Website: http://www.auroco.in/greenpractices

Sustainable Planning QLD 2010

30 to 31 August 2010 ,Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Website:http://connectconferences.intuitwebsites.com/Sustainable_Planning_Queensland_201
0_Brochure_plus_Registration.pdf

CSDnews 17 June 2010

 Newsle
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*****

CSDnews 18 June 2010

 Newsle
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Admission Open

Appreciation Programme on Sustainability Science The programme is open to Graduates in any discipline or
(APSS) its equivalent from any recognised University. The
preference will be given to postgraduate scholars,
The programme is rooted in the principles of Agenda 21. scientists and policy makers working in the areas of
It endeavours to promote Sustainable Development with agriculture, rural development, environmental science
a global spirit of “Our Common Future”, to rescue and sustainable development.
planet Earth from the brink of collapse. The
Appreciation Programme also takes cognizance of the WALK IN ADMISSION
threat of climate change to sustainable development. To Admission to online APSS will be available throughout
know more about the Chair please visit our website at the year. There shall be four cycles in an academic year
http://www.ignou.ac.in/csd/home.htm i.e. January, April, July and October.

PROGRAMME OBJECTIVES FEE

• The core objective of this programme is to build
the capacity of policy makers, administrators,
scientists and educators as well as the general public
in the science and art of environmentally,
economically and socially sustainable development.
• The course will help the participants to develop an
Agenda 21 Plan of Action for their respective
village/town/city.
• To help those involved in agriculture to launch an
era of ever-green revolution which can help to
enhance productivity in perpetuity without
ecological harm.
SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE PROGRAMME
The special feature is conceptualization and development
of excellent study material by the eminent experts in the
country under the guidance of Prof. M.S. Swaminathan.
The contributors to the programme include: Professor
M.S. Swaminathan, Prof. P.C. Kesavan, Dr. K.
Balasubramanian, Ms. Ganga Vidya , Dr. A.A. Nambi,
Mr. S. Senthilkumaran , Dr. G.N. Hariharan and Dr.
Ajay Parida.
The programme has been developed in collaboration
with the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation.
DURATION
The programme can be completed in a minimum period
of one month and a maximum period of six months.
Rs. 500/- (Five hundred)
The details of the programme are available at
www.ignouonline.ac.in/save
*****
Leadership Programme on “Nutrition Security &
Sustainable Development” (LPNSSD)
India continues to rank poorly in the world on the human
development scale and nutrition. Malnutrition in India
persists despite an apparent surplus of food grains at the
national level, highlighting the fact that national food
security alone is not sufficient to attain nutrition security
at the household and individual levels. On the other
hand, the Government of India has already been
implementing a number of direct as well as cross cutting
programmes related to nutrition. However there are
significant gaps in public sector efforts underlining the
need for greater focus on the household and community
level rather than merely at the national or state level.
The Chair for Sustainable Development has developed a
programme on “Leadership Course on Nutrition Security
and Sustainable Development” in Collaboration with the
Coalition for Sustainable Nutrition Security in India
(CSNSI or the Coalition) to bring together evidence-
based lessons for better nutrition programming to
achieve nutrition security.

MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION PROGRAMME OBJECTIVES

The Programme is offered in English. This Leadership course is intended to sensitize and guide
policy and program implementers to make more
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS evidence-based programming for achieving nutrition
security and sustainable development.

CSDnews 19 June 2010

 Newsle
tter Vol. 3, Issue 1&2
MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION
SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE PROGRAMME The programme is offered in English.
The special feature of this programme is its
conceptualization and development in collaboration with ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
the Coalition for Sustainable Nutrition Security in India The programme is open to candidates who are graduates
(CSNSI or ‘the Coalition’). The Coalition, chaired by or equivalent in any discipline from any recognized
Professor M.S. Swaminathan, is a group of public and University. There is a special focus on candidates
private sector leaders who have united in an effort to working in the health and nutrition sector, including
improve nutrition security, ensuring that every Indian policy makers and programme implementers, civil
has access to balanced diet, safe drinking water, society and public health nutrition professionals.
environmental hygiene, sanitation, and primary health
care. The Coalition has developed and committed itself
WALK IN ADMISSION
to a Leadership Agenda for Action with help of an expert
Admission will be available throughout the year. There
Task Force to review nutrition security in India in order
will be four cycles in an academic year i.e. February,
to (1) highlight the urgent need to address high levels of
May, August, and November. The two month period
malnutrition in India; (2) develop recommendations for
between each of the two cycles will be used for
priority actions based on evidence and programming advertising the course and registration of the students for
experience; and (3) help build awareness, capacity and
the next cycle. The registration form will be
commitment among policy and programme leaders for available online at www.ignouonline.ac.in/save.
implementation of the recommendations. The course is
Registration will be confirmed only after verification of
designed based on the Leadership Agenda for Action.the certificates and payment of the required admission
The contributors to this program include: Prof. M.S.
fee. Facility for online payment is available through the
Swaminathan, task force members, special reviewers,payment gateway (AXIS Bank and Credit Card) being
consultants and the Coalition Secretariat who greatly
offered by the University for online programmes.
contributed to develop this programme. Students can also pay through Demand Draft (in favour
of IGNOU, New Delhi).
DURATION FEE
The programme can be completed in a minimum period The fee for the programme is Rs.500.
of one month and a maximum period of six months.
*****

For further information and feedback contact:

The Executive Director
Chair for Sustainable Development
INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY
Block No. 1, Room No. 21 & 22, Maidan Garhi,
New Delhi-110068
Phones: +91-11-29532374, +91-11-29571121/22, Fax: +91-11-29532374
E-mail: csd@ignou.ac.in, edrsusd@ignou.ac.in
Webpage: www.ignou.ac.in/csd/home.htm & www.ignouonline.ac.in/save

CSDnews 20 June 2010