Underweight children — all countries

Underweight children — India

Underweight children in India in 2020 — 31.5%. Ranked 22 in the world out of 24. Since 1989, the indicator has fallen by 24 pp.

2020 31.5% −2.3 pp vs 2017
World rank 22of 24
Period maximum 55.5%1989
Period minimum 29.4%2014

Trend over time

1989–2020 · % of children under 5

Underweight children — India, 1989–202020304050601989199319972001200520092013201720201989: 55.5%1991: 52.8%1992: 51.3%1997: 38.4%1999: 45.4%2006: 43.5%2014: 29.4%2015: 36.3%2017: 33.8%2020: 31.5%
Change over the period: −24 pp Annual average: -0.77 pp

Comparison, 2020

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: India

India 31.5%
World 12.9%
South Asia 28.1%
Underweight children — India, by year India All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2020 31.5
2017 33.8
2015 36.3 +6.9 pp
2014 29.4
2006 43.5
1999 45.4
1997 38.4
1992 51.3 −1.5 pp
1991 52.8
1989 55.5

Southern Asia, 2020

The same indicator for neighboring countries — with links to their pages

LK Sri Lanka 13.1 IN India 31.5

About the indicator

The share of children under the age of five whose weight is more than two standard deviations below the median of the WHO growth standards. The indicator reflects a combination of chronic and acute undernutrition and remains one of the most accurate indicators of poverty: it depends little on the methodology of income accounting.

Source: Global Health Observatory (WHO), license CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.