Right to Health


The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child had drafted basic rights of a child which focus on survival, development, protection and participation. One of the rights is the Right to survival, life, health and nutrition.

The right to a healthy life is a very basic right for every human being. But yet most children are deprived of this basic right. The issue is so serious that even today; one in every 2 children in India is malnourished. Often, children don’t receive the necessary nutrition and good quality healthcare required for a healthy childhood. Some of the reasons for this issue are: 


Some families simply don’t earn enough to provide even basic food, leave alone nutrients How can this issue be muted?

The government has designed some schemes and facilities that should be working towards resolving the issue of malnutrition. Some of these facilities are:

The Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) Centre and Anganwaadis monitor development of children between the ages of 0-6, provides supplementary nutrition and ante-natal care to children and women. The ICDS is a major national programme by the government that addresses the health and nutrition needs of children under the age of six. It seeks to reach out to young children with an integrated package of services, including supplementary nutrition, health care and pre-school education. Since the needs of a young child cannot be addressed in isolation from those of the mother’s, the programme also extends to adolescent girls, pregnant women and nursing mothers.
Immunisation provisions in government hospitals

Mid-day meals in schools are given to all children to supplement the lack of food and nutrition at home.

Despite the creation of these facilities, there is a gap in their implementation – which means that the people who were intended to be the beneficiaries of these schemes are unable to avail them.

How can YOU help fight undernourishment?  


CRY – Child Rights and You, is running a campaign ‘FULL – Fight Undernourishment Little by Little’. This campaign aims at ensuring healthcare for 28,000 children across India; and your support can make it happen.

How? 

With the support of local NGO's in different parts of the country, CRY works towards ensuring that children and families receive their rightful healthcare, by making sure that government healthcare schemes are implemented correctly in villages and slums; so that - the ICDS centres function well; children and mothers get timely nutrients and immunisation; children receive mid-day meals in school and the communities are educated about the importance of healthcare and nutrition.
The issue of malnutrition is huge, but it can be changed – and it needs to be done now. Because thousands of lives depends on it. 

Visit www.cry.org/full to donate and take your step to Fight Undernourishment Little by Little.