The Jan Bhagidari model has been extended to health campaigns such as Anemia Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan. Analyse the significance of people-centric approaches in addressing deep-rooted nutritional deficiencies in India.

Q. The Jan Bhagidari model has been extended to health campaigns such as Anemia Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan. Analyse the significance of people-centric approaches in addressing deep-rooted nutritional deficiencies in India. (15 marks, 250 words)

Anaemia persists as India's most stubborn nutritional deficiency — 57% of women and 67.1% of children remain anaemic per NFHS-5 (2019–21), despite the 6×6×6 supplementation drive since 2018 [1]. The Anemia Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (2026) now embeds a Jan Bhagidari (people's participation) model, recognising that deficiencies rooted in diet, habit and social norms cannot be fixed by supply-side delivery alone [2].

Why nutritional deficiencies are deep-rooted - Behavioural: poor compliance with IFA tablets; dietary taboos, low iron-rich food intake. - Social: gender bias in intra-household food distribution; last-eaten women, girls. - Structural: non-nutritional causes (sickle cell, malaria) in tribal, endemic pockets [1].

Significance of the people-centric approach - Last-mile behaviour change: community ownership sustains IFA adherence and dietary shift where BCC campaigns alone plateau [1]. - Demand generation: participation converts passive beneficiaries into active health-seekers, complementing the new T4 (Test-Treat-Talk-Track) protocol [2]. - Convergence & accountability: aligns with the "Whole-of-Government" model, mobilising ASHAs, SHGs, panchayats and schools across MoHFW, WCD and FSSAI [2]. - Sustainability: social-norm change outlasts scheme cycles, embedding a life-cycle nutrition culture [3].

Yet participation succeeds only when backed by reliable diagnostics, IFA supply and trained frontline workers — mobilisation without means breeds fatigue.

Ultimately, Jan Bhagidari reframes anaemia control from a delivery target into a social movement, marrying state provisioning with community agency. Fusing this with technology-enabled tracking offers India its most credible path to the WHO 2030 anaemia-reduction targets.

(~250 words)

Sources: 1. Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda Releases Anemia Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan Operational Guidelines, 16th CCHFW Meeting — PIB (2026) — Jan Bhagidari, T4 approach, whole-of-government convergence, non-nutritional causes 2. Steps taken under Anaemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) strategy — PIB (2022) — 6×6×6 strategy, NFHS-5 prevalence, BCC and testing interventions 3. Anaemia Mukt Bharat — National Health Mission — life-cycle approach and institutional framework