Student name
Institutional affiliation
Professor’s name
Date
Country Health Profile: India
Various countries in the world are faced by predicaments that result in the plummeting of the health status of its individuals. However, concerning health status, various social factors affect the realization of better health status within the country or state. For instance, education, population, religion, language, access to water, sanitation, and food are common determinants of health within the community in a specific country. Therefore to determine the health status of any country analysis of these factors should occur. Consequently, this excerpt seeks to outline the country health profile of India through an examination of the various elements.
Health status in India
Concerning the health status of India, there is a transition from a low to medium level across social demographic and economic factors. Although India has made significant strides in economic development, there have been shortcomings in the achievement of high healthcare status in both rural and urban populations. In specific, the prevalent healthcare disparities and social determinants contribute to a health crisis in addition to increasing the burden on the state. Medical staff in the country are on a daily routine managing severe diarrheal and water-borne diseases attributed to lack of water, anaemia and lung cancer (Water.Org). These diseases are on the rise because of the social determinants and elements that include the reduced access to water, low food and nutrition status, and poverty.
Water and sanitation in India
Access to proper sanitation and safe drinking water remains one of the most prevalent factors that affect the status of the Indian population’s health. India has a country with a large geographical area with a population of more than 1 billion people. The vast nature of the country accompanied by the vast population makes access to water and sanitation a problem due to lapses and discrepancies in distribution. In a survey conducted by the World Bank, over 21% of all the incidences of infectious diseases were attributed to the lack of water and sanitation services. The prevalence of communicable diseases caused by the lack of proper access to water and sanitation account for more than 500 deaths of children in a day (India Today,).
Mallick, Mandal, & Chouhan, posit that over 1.5 million Indian children had died of diarrheal diseases and 37.7 million due to water-borne infections. Additionally, the impact of insufficient water and sanitation access is seen through an elevated level of toxicants, including arsenic and lead that predispose the population to kidney lung and skin cancer. The ministry of drinking water and sanitation outlines that over 1.47 million individuals are predisposed to cancer due to the high quantities of arsenic, especially in the 9756 affected regions of West Bengal (IndiaNews). From the figure 01 below it is evident that over 19% of Indians consume drinking water laced with arsenic with the highest proportions being in West Bengal (41.6), Bihar (63.3), and Uttar Pradesh (70.1) (IndiaNews).
Figure 1: 19% of the Indian population ingests water with lethal levels of arsenic, (IndiaNews)
Consequent to the figure above, it is evident that over 239 million Indian citizens originating from 21 states and 153 districts and 21 states ingest contaminated water containing elevated levels of arsenic. According to the world population review, Delhi is the largest cosmopolitan city in India and accounts for over 29.596 million citizens. The large population is in dire need of water access with as more than 63% of the population is yet to have piped water. In figure 03 below, an illustration of the predicament is given denoting the lack of access to water which is in comparison to Pakistan, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. Therefore it is evident that India faces a severe challenge in health with children at more risk of water-borne diseases.
Figure 2: India accounts for more 19.33 % of the waterless proportion in the world (Pandey & Sengupta)
Food and nutrition in India
The Indian food banking network outlines that over 194.4 million people face malnutrition indicating 14.5%of the whole population. Women, in particular, are more at risk due to the lack of proper food and nutrition with the age group between 15 to 49 more affected (Khambete). Food and nutrition account for the second most affected social determinant in the Indian population. The lack of a proper supply of food and grain is attributed to the high demand within the population resulting in low outputs. Consequently, there is a higher prevalence of anaemia, vitamin A deficiency and protein-energy malnutrition.
The deficiency in food and nutrition is attributed to the lack of supply chain development of food grains, low market output, and speculation. Majorly the population encounters protein-energy malnutrition anaemia and vitamin deficiencies with the low nutritional status being the aggravating factor. However, most of the Indian population faces low literacy with lack of knowledge being the precipitating element regarding food requirements to sustain the body. Consequently, the study conducted by (Aijaz, 18), the high malnutrition level were attributed to the lack of proper education on nutrition and diet management.
From figure 03, it is clear that malnutrition in India is very prevalent, creating a myriad of problems. The illustration denotes that anaemia has a greater prevalence in India, resulting in deaths of over 1.5 million people (“Hunger In India | India Food banking Network”). Additionally through the analysis, the underweight, wasted and anaemic deficiencies affect the more than 30% of the population.in the rate of overweight and obesity 11% of the adolescent population seems affected by the scourge resulting in malnutrition. The findings from the discussion are synonymous to a study conducted by Aijaz 2017 denoting that 56% of young girls and 30% young boys from 15-19 age groups are anaemic.
Poverty in India
India has five religious categories accounting for the total population. The five religious demarcations include Buddhism, Sikhism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism. Consequent to these religious sections that advocate for high parity in women, India experiences a tremendous population growth rate that has contributed majorly in the creation of poverty (Rai et al. 19). According to Water.org, the lack of access to health resources, dilapidated healthcare infrastructure, and high level of illiteracy is attributed to the rising poverty levels. Besides the increasing poverty levels are influenced by the cast system that advocates for unequal distribution of resources. Through this extreme poverty levels in the Indian population, the population of the country continues to experience more vulnerabilities through the manifestation of sickness and diseases.
Poverty has grown in India due to the caste system and people, including men, women, and adolescents who do not have an equal distribution of education. Poverty and health have a two-way relationship with each other. Poverty is continuously increasing vulnerabilities among Indian people through developing sickness and other diseases. The standard conditions attributed to poverty include lung cancer which is seen to be as a result of tobacco smoking. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), India accounts for 12% of the world’s smokers due to the poverty factor.
The high prevalence in tobacco smoking is attributed to the dependence on the stimulant to ease pain (Katyayan and Manish). Through this placebo effect that smokers gain, of which 70% are men, premature deaths are on the rise attributed to the impact of tobacco smoking on the respiratory system. However, poverty levels are linked to the utilization of tobacco smoking as the abusers elude the high cost of medications. In a study conducted by (Ravallion), poor people spent money to buy tobacco as opposed to education shelter and health. Consequently, poverty is figured as the main predisposing factor to the usage of tobacco.
The reluctance in the uptake of pain medication continues the cycle of poverty, thereby placing the burden on the national economy. Thorat et al. (419) posit that every six seconds, there is one death attributed to tobacco in India, thereby affecting the economy and productivity losses. The prevalence of tobacco smoking increases the inequalities present in health care resulting in the elevated incidences of bronchitis, peptic ulcers, infertility, heart attacks, and tuberculosis. Moreover, tobacco smoking which is attributed to the poverty levels leads to irresponsible behavioural tendencies that predispose an individual to unwanted infections such as HIV/AIDS.
Poverty also predisposes the Indian population to malnutrition which affects the health status levels. Additionally, poverty results in malnutrition because the purchasing power of the citizens is reduced, resulting in decreased food consumption. Poverty also causes the people to lack money that would be utilized in the acquisition of healthy food which reduces the immunity of the community. Moreover, poverty causes anxiety, depression and chronic stress, especially in children reducing the learning capabilities. Through this impact of poverty on mental health, more and more Indians are developing psychiatric mood disorders and schizophrenia (Sadath, Anver and Rajesh, 547).
Literacy and education levels in India
Education plays an essential role in determining the health standards of any community or population. The ability of a person to read write and comprehend information is critical to the synthesis of medical information. Health requires an individual to actively involve himself or herself extensively with knowledge acquisition so that positive outcomes occur. Therefore, the lack of education causes individuals or population at large to elude interventions beneficial to the overall health status resulting in poor health conditions. This scenario leads to an exacerbation of diseases that would have otherwise been controlled.
According to (Wenr.news.org), education levels are on an incline with more girls attending school far from the case it was a few years ago. Through government spending, public school attendance has increased, resulting in moderate literacy levels, especially among adolescents. However, the rate of uptake of education is not within the desired levels, which indicates that education is a basic need and should be accorded to all individuals regardless of race. (Tilak, 113) outlines that education poverty is a prevailing predicament within the Indian community as around 34% of the adult population is illiterate.
In another study conducted by (Mohanty and Deepshikha, 2249), only 43% of the population in India has access to post-secondary education which indicates the dire nature of the education levels. Regarding post-graduate studies, the levels are even lower as the facilities offering the services are fewer than the demand. This scenario outlines that education is reserve for the few within the Indian population, thereby contributing to the increased cycle of illiteracy that breeds poverty. Through the propulsion of these factors, the population’s health faces poor outcomes because adverse outcomes are quite the norm.
Lack of infrastructure contributes to the dilapidated education sector with many Indians decrying lack of schools within the rural areas where the majority of the population resides. Through reduced government spending on the improvement of the education infrastructure, the exponential population growth will cripple the ability of the sector to give education to the public. Additionally, access to the basic need is inhibited by the extreme poverty levels of the population, making it unaffordable for most of the citizenry.
The unaffordability is attributed to the rising cost of education from the primary to secondary levels which transitions to highly expensive in the undergraduate and graduate levels. However, incentives, bursaries and fund exist for the poor in society; the demand often outweighs the supply creating a mechanics of want within the country. High costs of education in the country, therefore, result in the reduction of literacy levels in the population resulting in low health status as the population is unable to carry out efficient medical decisions that positively impact their medical prognosis.
The high illiteracy levels within the Indian population contributes to the poorly informed medical choices as they are unable to decipher evidence-based interventions tailored to protect the community at large. Additionally, through lack of education, the population tends to look out for alternative sources of healthcare such as traditional medicines which have a lower susceptibility of positive outcomes. Through these interventions, the uneducated masses pose a risk to not only themselves but the total population as a result of lack of information. Consequently, the increased risk contributes to a low health status within the country.
Women rights in India
The society in India favours the male gender due to the culture engrained by religion. Through the impact of this practice, various women’s rights have been violated, including rape, gender killings, and misogyny. In India, rape is one of the most prevalent injustices in the country with many women being forced to endure the harrowing ordeals due to a society that chastises empowerment the male gender. Rape incidents are high within India, with a prevalence of 8.5 % within some jurisdictions (Amani and Nisha, 209). The most publicized incident occurred in New Delhi, where a gang rape ended up with the death of a student.
The impact of rape within the society is tremendous in that the victims receive minimal to no support from the community. In fact, in many instances, the survivors of rape are often denied safe abortion services due to the normalcy of the scenarios within the society (Bhate-Deosthali, Padma, and Sangeeta Rege). Through this scenario and the non-urgency in handling marital rape incidences, the women’s rights are often violated within the society impacting their health. Safe abortion services is a reproductive health right that should be accorded to all women preventing adverse events attributed to unsafe termination of pregnancies.
The prevalence of rape within the society indicates a society with disdain towards the rights of women. The impact, however, is visualized through the employment rates of women vis-à-vis men. Through this blatant discrimination, the employment rates of women have been on an all-time low with less than 23% of the workforce comprised of women. The low composition of women indicates that the female gender lacks the much-needed purchasing power making the vulnerable within the society. Additionally, through the lack of female empowerment, the aspect of domestic and social violence is fueled within the Indian communities.
In India, specifically femicide, especially in the intrauterine stage, occurs more often. Through the utilization of ultrasound services that detect the sexual orientation of the fetus, the practice has been long practised within the Indian culture advocating for the abortion of the female fetus. However, recent regulations have been passed, preventing the disclosure of gender. At the same time, in the intrauterine stage, the practice is still prevalent within the backdoor health networks who champion the propulsion of the retrogressive thinking. Moreover, the abortion rates within the country are at an all-time high indicating the low impact of the regulations towards curbing the vice within the country.
Infanticide that targets the female gender is another common practice in India, which targets the rights of the girl child. Through practice, many children lose their lives through the degradation of thinking held by society. Although figures attribute, more deaths are attributed to the infectious diseases a significant proportion is attributed to the deaths of infants due to the open discrimination towards the female gender. According to (Vickery and Edwin Van Teijlingen 83), the practice of female infanticide is deeply entrenched within the Indian community spreading to Nepal as over 3.6% of unknown infant deaths attributed to the culture. Therefore through the practice, the infant mortality rate, which is a significant health indicator is on an all-time high.
Access to education resources for the girl child is another predicament that violates the rights of the female gender. Literacy levels in the female gender remain on a lower index as compared to their male counterparts. (Duarah, Tejaswita, 1839). The lower levels are an indication that women rights are optional within society. In figure 05 below, the illustration denotes that women, especially in rural areas, experience low access to education due to practices that include early marriage. The impact of the low access to education is increasingly severe in that the cycle of poverty continues to ravage the societies within the country.
Human rights in India
Violation of human rights in the world remains one of the biggest impediments towards achieving equality and justice. In India, although factors such as war are not prevalent, the open discrimination of the Muslim community in select states contravenes the fundamental freedom to choose religion. The open defamatory and discriminatory remarks concerning Muslim adherents make it harder for the people who conform to the religion to keep up with the discrimination, additionally through the abolishment of places of worship within the community set up purposes to eject the adherents from their heritage forcefully.
The revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir made it possible for the violation of human rights to occur. The changes enabled the government to arrest opposition leaders and civilians. Through the actions, freedom of movement and expression was curtailed as the government imposed a regulation necessitating the registration of persons within the jurisdiction.
The registration of persons within the two areas was flawed in that many people were omitted from the registration of persons through minor incidents such as spelling errors that were deemed intentional. Moreover, through the actions of the government, the people from the two regions were ostracized from other regions indicating the loss of citizenship. Consequently, the majority of the people hailing from the two autonomous regions acquired a statelessness status which made them foreigners in their place of birth and heritage. Through these actions, the people eventually were led into arrest and put in place of detention where the lack of personal spaces, civil order and multiple oppressions occur to date.
Life as a stateless or a foreigner in your birthplace is the highest violation of human rights.in the event that the actions would be reversed; the impact would still be significant.in that the education of the stateless individuals still occurred. Through these violations, the stateless individuals fell into detention where the access to food predisposes them to malnutrition. Moreover, access to healthcare services predisposes incarcerated individuals at risk of developing adverse events. Additionally, the crowded spaces in the jails make access to sanitation a problem leading to susceptibility to infectious infections.
In conclusion, India, as a country, has an improved health status as compared to other countries. The spanning population of over 1 billion people makes the distribution of meagre resources a challenge. Regarding the health status, the poverty, violation of human rights, violence against women, poor education, food and nutrition, water and sanitation levels result in the deterioration of health status in the country. Therefore to achieve a better health status, these factors must be addressed to achieve positive medical outcomes.
Works cited
Amani, S. Z., and Nisha Dhanraj Dewani. “Restorative justice: a contrivance of compensatory jurisprudence for the victims of rape in India.” Journal of Victimology and Victim Justice 2.2 (2019): 202-214.
Aijaz, Sumi. “Preventing Hunger And Malnutrition In India”. Observer Reasearch Foundation, 2020, pp. 13-17., https://www.orfonline.org/research/preventing-hunger-and-malnutrition in-india/. Accessed 29 Sept 2020.
Bhate-Deosthali, Padma, and Sangeeta Rege. “Denial of safe abortion to survivors of rape in india.” Health and human rights 21.2 (2019): 189.
Duarah, Tejaswita. “Access to Education by Women among Scheduled Tribes of North East India.” Journal of Critical Reviews 7.11 (2020): 1833-1840.
Katyayan, Preeti Agarwal, and Manish Khan Katyayan. “Effect of smoking status and nicotine dependence on pain intensity and outcome of treatment in Indian patients with temporomandibular disorders: A longitudinal cohort study.” The Journal of the Indian Prosthodontic Society 17.2 (2017): 156.
Khambete, Kelkar. “When Water Kills”. Indiawaterportal.Org, 2020, https://www.indiawaterportal.org/articles/when-water-kills.
“Hunger In India | India Foodbanking Network”. Indiafoodbanking.Org, 2020, https://www.indiafoodbanking.org/hunger.
IndiaNews. “19% Of Indians Drink Water With Lethal Levels Of Arsenic | India News – Times Of India”. The Times Of India, 2020, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/19-of-indians drink-water-with-lethal-levels-of-arsenic/articleshow/62226542.cms.
Mallick, Rahul, Salim Mandal, and Pradip Chouhan. “Impact of sanitation and clean drinking water on the prevalence of diarrhea among the under-five children in India.” Children and Youth Services Review (2020): 105478.
Mohanty, Atasi, and Deepshikha Dash. “Education for sustainable development: A conceptual model of sustainable education for India.” International Journal of Development and Sustainability 7.9 (2018): 2242-2255.
Thorat, Amit, et al. “Escaping and falling into poverty in India today.” World development 93 (2017): 413-426.
Tilak, Jandhyala BG. “Education poverty in India.” Education and development in India. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore, 2018. 87-162.
Vickery, Michelle, and Edwin Van Teijlingen. “Female infanticide in India and its relevance to Nepal.” Journal of Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences 3.1 (2017): 79-85.
Pandey, kilmar, and Ilhar Sengupta. “19% Of World’S People Without Access To Clean Water Live In India”. Downtoearth, 2020, https://www.downtoearth.org.in. Accessed 29 Sept 2020.
Rai, Rajesh Kumar, et al. “The burden of iron-deficiency anaemia among women in India: how have iron and folic acid interventions fared?.” WHO South-East Asia journal of public health 7.1 (2018): 18-23.
Sadath, Anver C., and Rajesh H. Acharya. “Assessing the extent and intensity of energy poverty using Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index: Empirical evidence from households in India.” Energy Policy 102 (2017): 540-550.
Water.org. 2020. Water In India – India’s Water Crisis & Sanitation Issues In 2020 | Water.Org. [online] Available at: <https://water.org/our-impact/india/> [Accessed 29 September 2020].