Score:
9.5/15
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Topper’s Copy
GS2
Social Justice
15 marks
Why is adequate protein consumption important for achieving nutritional security in India? Discuss the major challenges and suggest measures to build a nutritious India.
Student’s Answer
Evaluation by SuperKalam
Demand of the Question
- Why protein consumption matters for India's nutritional security
- Challenges in ensuring adequate protein intake for people
- Measures needed to build a healthy and nutritious India
What you wrote:
Protein builds the body's tissues and immunity, and its shortfall is a core part of India's undernutrition problem
Protein builds the body's tissues and immunity, and its shortfall is a core part of India's undernutrition problem
Suggestions to improve:
- Could briefly explain that nutritional security requires adequate nutrients, not just a full stomach.
What you wrote:
Importance of adequate protein:
- Physical growth and development
eg Stunting affects about 1/3rd of under-five children (NFHS-5 data)
- Immunity and disease resistance
eg malnourished children face higher mortality from diarrheal
- Maternal and foetal health:
eg Anaemia & low birth weight is common
Importance of adequate protein:
- Physical growth and development
eg Stunting affects about 1/3rd of under-five children (NFHS-5 data)
- Immunity and disease resistance
eg malnourished children face higher mortality from diarrheal
- Maternal and foetal health:
eg Anaemia & low birth weight is common
Suggestions to improve:
- Could add a short explanation under each heading showing how protein supports growth, immune function or maternal tissue needs.
- Can connect these functions to nutritional security through better health, development and ability to work, rather than relying mainly on disease indicators.
What you wrote:
Major challenges
1) Low-income diets eg dal, eggs, & milk & expensive for poor household
2) Vegetarian dietary patterns with low protein quality eg heavy reliance on rice and wheat
3) Poor nutrition awareness eg Infant feeding practices often rely on diluted milk or sugary substitute.
Major challenges
1) Low-income diets eg dal, eggs, & milk & expensive for poor household
2) Vegetarian dietary patterns with low protein quality eg heavy reliance on rice and wheat
3) Poor nutrition awareness eg Infant feeding practices often rely on diluted milk or sugary substitute.
Suggestions to improve:
- Could focus the dietary challenge on cereal-heavy meals with insufficient protein-rich foods, rather than broadly labelling vegetarian diets.
- Can add the policy imbalance favouring rice and wheat through procurement and subsidies, explaining how it affects the availability and relative affordability of pulses.
What you wrote:
Measures to build Nutritious India:
i) Expand protein-rich food access.
eg inclusion of pulses in PDS & Poshan Abhiyaan.
ii) strengthen nutrition programmes
eg supplementary nutrition to children in Anganwadi
iii) Promote nutrition education
eg community-level nutrition counselling by ASHA.
iv) Support pulse and dairy production
eg Mission for Atmanirbharta in Pulses to raise domestic pulses production
Measures to build Nutritious India:
i) Expand protein-rich food access.
eg inclusion of pulses in PDS & Poshan Abhiyaan.
ii) strengthen nutrition programmes
eg supplementary nutrition to children in Anganwadi
iii) Promote nutrition education
eg community-level nutrition counselling by ASHA.
iv) Support pulse and dairy production
eg Mission for Atmanirbharta in Pulses to raise domestic pulses production
Suggestions to improve:
- Could distinguish food access through PDS from the nutrition support and coordination proposed under Poshan Abhiyaan.
- Can specify protein-rich supplementary meals in the Anganwadi point, so the measure directly addresses the question.
- Could make nutrition counselling practical by promoting cereal-legume combinations, as recommended in the ICMR-NIN Dietary Guidelines, rather than leaving it as general awareness.
What you wrote:
Adequate protein is central to building healthy, productive citizens, and India's nutrition gap is as much about affordability and awareness as about supply. Combining affordable access, targeted schemes and nutrition education can turn protein security into lasting national nutritional security.
Adequate protein is central to building healthy, productive citizens, and India's nutrition gap is as much about affordability and awareness as about supply. Combining affordable access, targeted schemes and nutrition education can turn protein security into lasting national nutritional security.
Suggestions to improve:
- Could end with the goal of equitable access to balanced diets, especially for vulnerable groups, rather than repeating the programme categories.
Your answer addresses all three demands with clear headings and relevant measures. Strengthen the protein-specific explanations and supply-side challenges, and make programme delivery more precise for greater depth.
Demand of the Question
- Why protein consumption matters for India's nutritional security
- Challenges in ensuring adequate protein intake for people
- Measures needed to build a healthy and nutritious India
What you wrote:
Protein builds the body's tissues and immunity, and its shortfall is a core part of India's undernutrition problem
Protein builds the body's tissues and immunity, and its shortfall is a core part of India's undernutrition problem
Suggestions to improve:
- Could briefly explain that nutritional security requires adequate nutrients, not just a full stomach.
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