Anaemia alarm: Around 50-52% of Indian women affected

Anaemia in women is one of the major health challenges, warned Dr V K Paul, Member, NITI Aayog on Wednesday.

At the 6th Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) public health summit, Paul called for a renewed focus on delivering health where it matters most — at the district and community level.

“The proportion of women who have anaemia is around 50-52 per cent. Change is required in food habits. Anaemia is often least talked about,” he said.

He acknowledged India’s progress on maternal and child survival, noting that most of the maternal and child health indicators have improved, especially the neonatal mortality rate stands at 17 against the SDG target of 12, but urged acceleration so that all states reach equitable outcomes by 2030.

Paul highlighted three priority areas for health which include ensuring lagging states achieve single-digit maternal mortality, forging partnerships to eliminate targeted infectious diseases, and making nutrition a cornerstone of public-health strategy, especially given that one in four Indian women are severely anaemic.

“Artificial intelligence offers a huge opportunity for public health — from individual preventive care to disease-spectrum surveillance and life course, to decision-making with diagnosis and treatment; use of digital and AI on scale, but we must manage the risks carefully as well,” he said.

Former Union Minister Smriti Irani emphasised the importance of healthcare research, strengthening last-mile delivery and placing women’s health and nutrition at the core of India’s public health priorities.

Irani stressed maternal referral readiness, informed family planning, nutrition and adolescent health, digital public goods with citizen feedback, stronger public–private partnerships and women’s health beyond reproduction.

“We must plug gaps in emergency obstetric care, blood availability and critical transport. Strengthening LaQshya (Labour Room Quality Improvement Initiative) like quality initiatives and scaling high-impact protocols in district hospitals will save lives,” she said.

Highlighting the importance of translating discussions into concrete action, Irani noted, “If we succeed, a pregnant woman in remote India will get the same standard of respectful, skilled care as a mother in the city. If we succeed, a schoolgirl will not drop out due to anaemia or untreated depression. If we succeed, India’s demographic dividend will be a dividend of health, skill and dignity.”

Former AIIMS Delhi director and chairman-governing Council, CII Centre for Health Dr Randeep Guleria emphasised the urgent need to shift India’s public-health focus from treatment to prevention and last-mile delivery.

“Delivering last-mile impact requires government leadership, private-sector innovation, community mobilisation and global expertise working together,” he said.