India ranked 111th out of 125 countries in the Global Hunger Index-2023, with the highest child wasting rate of 18.7 per cent.
The overall score for India has been put at 28.7 in the ranking, which is categorised as serious.
The report also said that the prevalence of anaemia in women aged between 15 and 24 years stood at 58.1 per cent in India.
India’s ranking is lower than the neighbouring countries like Pakistan (102nd), Bangladesh (81st), Nepal (69th) and Sri Lanka (60th).
India only fared better than South Asia and Africa South of the Sahara, which recorded a score of 27 each.
The government rejected the index calling it a flawed measure of “hunger” that does not reflect India’s true position.
According to the Women and Child Development Ministry, the index has "serious methodological issues and a malafide intent."
According to the 2023 report, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Chile, China, and Croatia are the top-performing nations in terms of hunger reduction.
Chad, Niger, Lesotho, Congo, Yemen, Madagascar, and the Central African Republic, on the other side, were identified as the countries with the lowest index rankings.