Mapping the Food Security Situation in Rural Bihar and Jharkhand: Insights from Two Food Security Atlases

Abstract

The paper draws from the district-level food security atlases of rural Bihar and Jharkhand prepared by the Institute for Human Development (IHD). The atlases explore the dimensions and approach to measuring food security as well as the linkages with the component indicators. Food availability, access to food, and utilization of food are the three dimensions that have been delved into in detail. It identifies the ‘priority indicators’ and ‘priority districts’ which are the most food-insecure regions in both the states. The government programmes relevant to food insecurity have been briefly analysed and policy interventions have been suggested to improve the food security situation, especially in the food insecure regions of the two states. Female literacy rate, dependency ratio, disease and health behaviour, access to toilet facilities, availability of non-agricultural employment opportunities, and extent of irrigation have emerged as crucial policy variables for overall food security in Bihar. On the other hand, in Jharkhand, the value of agricultural output, availability of health institutions, and dependency ratio have emerged as priority indicators related to food security. Special welfare programmes targeted at vulnerable communities and food-insecure regions are suggested in both states to tackle food insecurity. There is also an imperative need to increase the availability and accessibility of health institutions in both states. At the same time, an increase in agricultural productivity by enhancing irrigation coverage is a crucial aspect, common for both states. An increase in dietary diversity through community and individual kitchen gardens is also suggested for improving the status of malnourishment in rural areas of Bihar and Jharkhand.

1 Introduction

The persisting challenge of under-nutrition in India remains a major hindrance to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), both, directly and indirectly, related to hunger and food security as well as other health-related outcomes. This paper provides a spatial overview of dimension specific as well as overall food security in Bihar and Jharkhand. It also explores the status of districts in terms of availability, access, utilization of food, and overall food security, and identifies some important policy variables for food-insecure districts.

In 2008, the Institute for Human Development (IHD) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) together undertook an analysis of the dimensions of food security at the sub-state, or district level, for eight states of India, viz., Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra (WFP-IHD, 2008). In 2018, IHD in partnership with the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai, prepared two new food security atlases one for Odisha (IHD-IGIDR, 2018a, b)¹ and the other for Bihar (IHD-IGIDR, 2018a, b) as follow-up work on the Food Security Atlas of Rural India.

Till 2000, both Bihar and Jharkhand formed the same state. In 2000, Jharkhand became a separate state. After the separation, both the states have performed rather well both in economic as well as social spheres. However, in terms of human development indicators, Bihar and Jharkhand have been among the most backward states in India. Bihar (52%) and Jharkhand (42%) also have the highest multidimensional poverty rates among the states (NITI Aayog, 2021). During 2020–21, Bihar and Jharkhand had per capita net state domestic product (NSDP) of ₹31,017 and ₹53,489, respectively, which represent 36% and 62% of the all-India average, respectively. Both of the states face several daunting challenges such as high incidence of poverty, disparities, poor performance of social and human development indicators, etc. Jharkhand's economy is characterized by higher inequality as compared to most other states of the country, including Bihar. Two-fifths of the under-five children in both the states are underweight in rural areas according to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5, as compared to 33% in all of India. Also, in both states, nearly 70% of children in the 6–36-month age group suffer from anaemia. Higher proportion of women in Bihar (27%) and Jharkhand (29%) are found to be thin compared to 21% in all of India as per the NFHS-5. These indicators indicate that malnutrition is high among women and children in both the states. According to the composite SDG Index constructed by NITI Aayog, Bihar and Jharkhand are ranked second last and last among the states in terms of SDG 2 on zero hunger and overall development indices (Government of India, 2020–21). Thus, it is obvious that Bihar and Jharkhand are faced with a huge challenge in achieving higher food and nutrition security.

As far as food security issues in rural Bihar and Jharkhand are concerned, existing studies have used different indicators to assess the food security status of the states. For example, Gulati et al. (2012), classified the various Indian states based on two indices of malnutrition, namely, the Normalized Adult Malnutrition Index (NAMI) and the Normalized Child Malnutrition Index (NCMI). They found that all the eastern states fell in the top two categories of malnutrition, with Bihar faring the worst among them. A similar study conducted by the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF, 2008) classified various Indian states based on a composite index of food security using seven indicators and found that the eastern states such as Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand fell in the category of ‘very high’ food insecurity, while Bihar and Odisha were grouped in ‘high’ food insecurity category. Such levels of food insecurity and malnutrition prevalent in the eastern part of India reflect the inability of government-sponsored measures to alleviate food deficiency in the poverty-ridden pockets and show that the programmes have not efficiently reached the targeted beneficiary population. The Food Security Atlas of Rural Jharkhand (2008) found that the various districts of Jharkhand fared poorly on nutritional outcomes, with only the more urbanized and industrialized districts performing better. Access to road and irrigation were the two areas in which the state lagged considerably behind the country, while low per capita agricultural productivity was the feature of the state’s rainfed agriculture (WFP-IHD, 2008). The Food Security Atlases for Rural Bihar and Rural Jharkhand were revisited in 2018 and 2022, respectively, using the latest data and wherever appropriate using some new variables but based on essentially the same methodologies adopted earlier (see IHD-IGIDR, 2018a, 2018b, 2022). This paper is based on the insights and main findings derived from the two atlases for Bihar and Jharkhand.

The paper is organized as follows: the introduction is followed by Sect. 2 which provides a conceptual framework for the study. Section 3 explains the details of the data and methodology. Section 4 discusses the major findings, and the last section provides the conclusions.

2 Conceptual Framework

Globally, the term food security is used in varied ways (Smith et al., 1993), but the most widely cited definition came from the first World Food Summit (FAO, 1996) which proposed that the food security ‘exists when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life’. According to this definition, food security encompasses four aspects: food availability, food accessibility, food utilization, and food stability (FAO, 2006; Gross et al., 2000). ‘Food availability’ refers to the physical quantity of food of an appropriate quality that is produced domestically and distributed (FAO, 2006). An individual's access to food can be determined by factors such as purchasing power, food prices, legal entitlements, and political will (FAO, 2008). The availability and access to food do not necessarily guarantee the reduction in malnutrition among its population. The third dimension, ‘food utilisation’ describes whether or not individuals or households can absorb sufficient energy and nutrition from food (FAO, 2018). Hence, food security’s life-enforcing power that biological utilization of food consumed gives cannot be ignored which, in turn, influences the health-seeking behaviour, age, and gender-appropriate nutritional requirements as well as by giving access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities takes care of the basics of entitlements to instil a love of life in all (MoSPI & WFP, 2019). ‘Food stability’, the final dimension, refers to the situation in which a country, state, district, household, or individual always has sufficient food supplies (Singh & Alka, 2019; Jatav et al., 2021a, 2021b). The most recent definitions of food security are multifaceted. They go beyond economics and physical availability and include social, health, and nutritional aspects. Cook and Frank (2008) opine that food insecurity occurs when people do not have enough food to satisfy hunger and resort to coping strategies such as begging, scavenging, or relying on emergency assistance programmes. Their limited disposable income, limited household resources, and poor socioeconomic status are important factors or indicators of food insecurity (Rush & Rusk, 2009). Ensuring food security and providing access to safe drinking water and modern energy for all remains a key challenge for sustainable development (Rasul & Sharma, 2016).

Jatav et al. (2022) highlighted the key works of Mahadevan and Sandy (2013), Payne et al. (2016), Farrukh et al. (2020a, 2020b), and Swati and Arora (2021) which have used the definition of food security as given by FAO (1996) in context of India. Mahadevan and Sandy's (2013) study of India's regions focused on the regional implications of social characteristics including caste and religion. The complicated social structure in India, according to their findings, limits the effectiveness of development initiatives like Food for Work and the Public Distribution System (PDS) in tackling challenges associated with food security. The institutions and procedures controlling whole economies and societies have also been noted to have an impact on food-related issues, in addition to food production and agricultural operations (Sen, 1981). The research on food security measures up to this point has mostly underlined how different indicators might represent the multidimensionality of food security in various situations (MoSPI & WFP, 2019). This paper compares the three main dimensions of the food security index and identifies the dimension-specific variables which are critical for food insecurity in the various districts of Bihar and Jharkhand.

3 Objectives, Data, and Methodology

3.1 The Objectives of This Paper Are

• To explore the dimensions, indicators, approaches, and methods of measuring food security in terms of food availability, access, and utilization.

• To analyse the nature and dynamics of the food security situation at the district level and identify the regions/districts which are most affected by food insecurity in rural Jharkhand and Bihar.

• To suggest policy interventions appropriate to improving food security for the food-insecure regions in Jharkhand and Bihar.

3.2 Data

The study uses district-level secondary data to evaluate the food security status of the districts in Bihar and Jharkhand. A total of 15 indicators are used to capture three major dimensions of food security, i.e. food availability, food accessibility, and food utilization (food stability is excluded as there is a lack of data) to compute district-level food security indices (Table 1).

Table 1 Indicators used to compute food security index

3.3 Methodology

The computation of composite index of food security and its dimensional indices requires normalization of the various component indicators to obtain homogeneity of units. The normalized indicators thus obtained are scale-free or have homogenous units and are therefore comparable and can be aggregated into composite indices. The study has used the Range Equalization Method (REM) or max–min approach to convert indicators to a common scale to normalize indicators into a common range (0–1). The scaled least achievement corresponds to zero, whereas the best achievement corresponds to 1. Under the max–min approach, an index has been constructed for each variable that is calculated by applying the following general REM formula adopted by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The district having a higher Food Security Index (FSI) value is considered more food secure as compared to that demonstrated by the districts with the lower index value. Also, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is used to find out the policy variables for both states. The FSI is a composite index covering three dimensions, i.e. access, availability, and utilization of food.

$$\mathrm{Z}_{\rm ij} =\frac{{X}_{ij-\,{\rm Min}({X}_{ij})}}{{\rm Max}({X}_{ij})-\,{\rm Min}({X}_{ij})}$$

where Z_ij is the variable index value (i) for the jth district, X_ij is the actual value of the ith indicator in the jth district, and Max (X_ij) and Min (X_ij) are the maximum and minimum values of the ith indicator for the jth district, respectively.

After calculating the index of each variable, we averaged them by dividing by the number of districts to get each dimension index, i.e. Availability Index, Access Index, and Utilization Index. Finally, we have averaged these three dimensions to arrive at the composite FSI. Finally, districts are categorized into highly insecure, insecure, moderately secure, secure, and highly secure, based on both dimension-specific and overall FSI. Furthermore, PCA is used to compute the factor loading of each of these indicators to analyse the triggering variables for the food security of the districts.

4 Major Findings

4.1 Food Availability Index

• Status of Districts in the Food Availability Index of Rural Jharkhand

The extent of irrigation has in all cases not been translated into the per capita value of cereal output. The districts of Latehar, Palamu, Koderma, and Garhwa, despite having relatively high irrigation coverage, have a modest or low per capita value of cereal output while the districts of Khunti, Simdega, Gumla, and Purbi Singhbhum, despite having low irrigation (less than 10%). have a high value of cereal output. Irrigation has helped more in stabilizing agricultural production than in increasing it.

The districts which are extremely food secure in terms of the Food Availability Index are Ranchi, Purbi Singhbhum, Dhanbad, Latehar, and Hazaribagh. The districts of Dhanbad, Purbi Singhbhum and Ranchi are highly urbanized and have low variability of rainfall, whereas Ranchi and Purbi Singhbhum districts have registered high per capita value of cereal output. While Hazaribagh is moderately developed in terms of levels of urbanization and extent of irrigation, it has a very low variability of rainfall. However, that has not translated into a higher per capita value of cereal output in the Hazaribagh district. Latehar has the highest proportion of net irrigated area to net sown area and is moderately placed in terms of variability of rainfall and per capita value of cereal output. Except for Dumka, the entire Santhal Pargana region (north-eastern part of Jharkhand) is food insecure to highly insecure with regards to food availability. Godda and Pakur districts are placed as highly food insecure. While Godda has the lowest rate of urbanization in the state, i.e. below 5%, and the per capita value of cereal output is also among the lowest. It is moderately placed in terms of the extent of irrigation. Similarly, Pakur district performs poorly in terms of the per capita value of cereal output as well as the rate of urbanization (7.5%). Garhwa and Jamtara districts have the highest rainfall variability and also depict low levels of urbanization (Map 1, Table 2).

Map 1

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food availability index of rural Jharkhand.

Table 2 Status of districts in food availability index of rural Bihar and Jharkhand

• Status of Districts in the Food Availability Index of Rural Bihar

Food Availability Index estimates from Bihar reveal that districts of Jamui, Kishanganj, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Araria, and Supaul are the most insecure districts in the state. Among these districts, Jamui, Darbhanga, and Madhubani produce very small agricultural output per capita, and they have also relatively low irrigated areas. Additionally, Jamui, Araria, and Gaya have the lowest percentage of villages with access to towns. On the contrary, Rohtas, Aurangabad, Sheikhpura, Jehanabad, Begusarai, Paschim Champaran, Bhojpur, and Sheohar are the districts that come up as highly food-secure districts in terms of availability of food. Among these districts, in Rohtas and Aurangabad, agricultural output is high as well as irrigation facilities are better, while Paschim Champaran has the highest agricultural output. Also, access to towns is better in the districts of Sheikhpura, Begusarai, Bhojpur, and Sheohar. The moderately food-secure districts include Nalanda, Buxar, Nawada, Siwan, Purvi Champaran, Munger, and Saran (Map 2).

Map 2

District-wise food availability index of rural Bihar.

The availability of food, however, depends not only on its production expressed in terms of the per capita value of cereal output but also on the factors which help in the growth of the food market through the growth of non-agricultural income and resultant transport of food from surplus producing areas to deficit areas, and linking habitations to the market.

4.2 Access to Food Index

• Status of Districts in Access to Food Index of Rural Jharkhand

In terms of accessibility, Ramgarh and Dhanbad districts have emerged as highly food secure in terms of access to food and highly urbanized; they are also marked by a high level of mining and industrial activities. Hence, the non-dependency rate in these districts is very high. In both the districts, mining and industrial activities associated with urban areas offer employment and income opportunities to a large number of its population, as a result of which the monthly per capita expenditure (MPCE) is very high. At the same time, the percentage of villages with access to paved roads and the proportion of non-agricultural workers are also found to be very high in these districts. The performance of these districts across all these component indicators has made them highly secure in terms of access to food. The other three highly secure districts, namely, Giridih, Hazaribagh, and Koderma have higher casual wage rates and better rural connectivity. On the other hand, Pakur, Sindega, Godda, Garhwa, and Sahibganj districts are at the lower ladder of the Access to Food Index.

The districts of the Santhal Pargana region—Godda, Sahibganj, Jamtara, Dumka, and Pakur—are either highly insecure or food insecure in terms of the composite Access to Food Index. The production and productivity of the agricultural sector in these districts are low. The tribal-dominated districts are moderate to highly insecure in terms of access to food. Simdega district, with over 80% Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Scheduled Caste (SC) population, fares poorly in terms of rural casual wages and rural connectivity, and is therefore ranked as highly insecure in terms of access to food.

Almost the entire North Chotanagpur division, constituting districts of Hazaribagh, Koderma, Giridih, Ramgarh, Bokaro, and Dhanbad, emerged as highly food secure in terms of access to food. This mining-industrial and highly urbanized region is characterized by higher shares of working age population, lower shares of agricultural labourers and ST & SC population, higher casual wage rates, and better rural connectivity. An improvement in access to employment opportunities, through industrialization and urbanization, can go a long way in improving the access to food conditions in highly insecure regions (Map 3, Table 3).

Map 3

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food access index of rural Jharkhand.

Table 3 Status of districts in access to food index of rural Jharkhand and Bihar

• Status of Districts in Access to Food Index of Rural Bihar

Based on the Access to Food Index, Gaya, Purnia, Paschim Champaran, Katihar, Banka, Araria, and Sheohar districts are the most insecure districts in Bihar. The population in these districts have the lowest monthly per capita consumption expenditure and the lowest casual wage rate. Eight extremely food-secure districts include Saran, Vaishali, Siwan, Gopalganj, Muzaffarpur, Madhubani, Arwal, and Jahanabad. Furthermore, these districts have a high non-dependency ratio (Map 4, Table 3).

Map 4

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food access index of rural Bihar.

4.3 Food Utilization Index

• Status of Districts in Food Utilization Index of Rural Jharkhand

The result shows that Ranchi, Purbi Singhbhum, Simdega, Saraikela-Kharsawan, and Gumla districts in Jharkhand are the most food secure in terms of utilization or absorption of food. On the other hand, districts of Khunti, Pakur, Ramgarh, Bokaro, and Pashchimi Singhbhum are found to be highly insecure in terms of the Food Utilization Index.

In terms of the availability of rural health institutions, among the highly secure districts, all five districts have more than 20 Primary Health Centres (PHCs) per lakh population. Ranchi has the highest proportion of households with access to an improved toilet facility and also has among the highest rural female literacy and the lowest prevalence of disease in terms of diarrhoea among children. Purbi Singhbhum district has the lowest prevalence of disease and has among the highest proportions of households with access to improved toilet facilities and availability of rural health institutions. Simdega district has the highest rural female literacy and availability of rural health institutions and the second highest proportion of households with access to an improved toilet facility.

On the other hand, the highly insecure district of Khunti, in terms of food utilization, has among the lowest proportions of households with access to safe drinking water and among the highest prevalence of disease. Pakur has among the lowest rural female literacy rates and lowest proportions of households with access to an improved toilet facility. Ramgarh, which is an otherwise developed district, is also among the highly food insecure districts in terms of food utilization as it has among the lowest proportions of households with access to safe drinking water (Map 5, Table 4).

Map 5

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food utilization index of rural Jharkhand.

Table 4 Status of districts in food utilization index of rural Jharkhand and Bihar

• Status of Districts in Food Utilization Index of Rural Bihar

In terms of food utilization, the index shows that the districts in the southern region of Bihar are worse off while those in the northern region are relatively better off. The districts of Rohtas, Begusarai, Sheikhpura, Kaimur (Bhabua), Sheohar, Gopalganj, Aurangabad, and Siwan are found to be highly food secure in terms of the Food Utilization Index. These districts also have high female literacy rates. Except for the districts of Aurangabad and Siwan, all other districts in this group have a high proportion of households having access to an improved toilet. All the districts in these categories also have a lower prevalence of diseases among children below 5 years. Purnia, Darbhanga, Sitamarhi, Saharsa, Madhubani, Araria, Jamui, and Supaul districts, on the other hand, are found to be extremely insecure mainly due to low female literacy rates and poor sanitation facilities (Map 6, Table 4).

Map 6

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food utilization index of rural Bihar.

4.4 Food Security Outcome Index

• Status of Districts in Food Security Outcome Index of Rural Jharkhand

The Food Security Outcome Index was arrived at by adding the average of all three indicators. Table 5 indicates the status of the districts in terms of the outcome indicators and Food Security Outcome Index. The Food Security Outcome Index computed through REM is shown in Maps 7 and 8. Based on the three component indicators, the districts of Hazaribagh, Ranchi, Kodarma, Giridih, and Gumla in Jharkhand have emerged as highly secure in terms of the outcome of food security. On the other hand, districts of Jamtara, Dumka, Deoghar, Pakur, and Pashchimi Singhbhum are found to be highly insecure in terms of the Food Security Outcome Index of rural Jharkhand.

Table 5 Status of districts in food security outcome index of rural Jharkhand and Bihar

Map 7

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food security outcome index of rural Jharkhand.

Map 8

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food security outcome index of rural Bihar.

Almost all the districts of the Santhal Pargana division are insecure or highly insecure in terms of the outcome of food security owing to a very high proportion of anaemic as well as underweight children. Jamtara district has among the highest proportion of underweight children, while Dumka has the second highest proportion of anaemic children. Deoghar has among the highest proportion of women whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is below normal as well as anaemic children. On the other end of the spectrum, Ranchi district has the second lowest proportion of thin women while Hazaribagh district has the second lowest proportion of anaemic as well as underweight children. Koderma district has the lowest proportion of children aged 6–59 months who are anaemic.

The results underline the fact that children in Jharkhand are at substantially higher risk of chronic and current malnutrition, and child malnutrition is almost a universal challenge across the state with certain pockets of severe malnutrition. Nearly 40% of children under the age of five in Jharkhand suffer from chronic malnutrition (stunting), approximately 39% are underweight, and 22% suffer from wasting as of 2019–2021 (NFHS-5). The prevalence of such levels of food insecurity and malnutrition is a stern reminder that the various government-sponsored measures to alleviate food deficiency in the poverty-ridden pockets of the region have not desirably reached the targeted population. To be nutrition secure, all people should be free from chronic malnutrition and diseases so that the human body can absorb and utilize the food more effectively (Map 7, Table 5).

• Status of Districts in Food Security Outcome Index of Rural Bihar

The three most insecure districts in terms of food security outcome in Bihar are Araria, Arwal, and Purnia. These districts lie in the South and South East corners of Bihar and belong to the least developed regions of the state. Also, the incidence of underweight and anaemia among children as well as BMI among women are extremely high in these districts. These districts call for specially targeted policies to improve the outcome of food security-aimed interventions. The secure group contains eight districts, i.e. Gopalganj, Siwan, Pashchim Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Purba Champaran, Madhubani, Sheohar, and Buxar. These districts also have a relatively low prevalence of anaemia and underweight among children and BMI among women (Map 8, Table 5).

4.5 Food Security Index

• Status of Districts in Food Security Index of Rural Jharkhand

Ranking district-level FSI in Jharkhand based on averaging the index values of the three dimensions reveals that Purbi Singhbhum, Ranchi, Dhanbad, Hazaribagh, and Ramgarh districts are highly food-secure districts, whereas Jamtara, Garhwa, Pakur, Sahibganj, and Godda districts are found to be most food insecure. Purbi Singhbhum and Ranchi, which are highly industrialized and urbanized districts, emerged as the most food secure among all the 24 districts of Jharkhand owing to their second position and first position, respectively, in Food Availability Index and Food Utilization Index. Dhanbad, again one of the industrially advanced and the most urbanized district, is placed at the third position in FSI as it occupies the second and third position, respectively, in Access to Food Index and Food Availability Index. Similarly, Ramgarh, yet another industrial and urbanized district, occupy the fifth position in terms of being the most food-secure district owing to it being placed at the first position in the Access to Food Index.

On the other hand, Godda, Sahibganj and Pakur districts in the Santhal Pargana region together form the zone of high food insecurity. Godda district is the most food-insecure district and is placed at the last position in FSI. This district is placed at the third lowest position in terms of the Access to Food Index and second lowest in the Food Availability Index. Sahibganj, which is among the most insecure group of districts, recorded the lowest Access to Food. Pakur, which is one of the five most insecure FSI districts, is ranked fourth lowest in Food Availability Index and Food Utilization Index (Map 9, Table 6).

Map 9

Source Computed and prepared by the IHD research team

District-wise food security index of rural Jharkhand.

Table 6 Status of districts in food security index of rural Jharkhand and Bihar

• Status of Districts in Food Security Index of Rural Bihar

In terms of FSI, the most secure districts in Bihar are: Rohtas, Begusarai, Jehanabad, Sheikhpura, Gopalganj, Bhojpur, Aurangabad, and Siwan. These districts also belong to the highly secure group in terms of availability dimension. On the contrary, Kishanganj, Katihar, Darbhanga, Gaya, Purnia, Supaul, Araria, and Jamui districts are the most insecure districts in the state in terms of the composite FSI. These districts are also insecure/highly insecure in terms of both availability and access dimensions (Map 10, Table 6).

Map 10

District-wise food security index of rural Bihar.

4.6 Identifying the Policy Variables

The factor loadings derived from the PCA technique are applied to identify the policy variables which are important in explaining the food insecurity/security among districts which need further intervention in food-insecure areas/districts. The variables, given in Table 7, show the most important indicators that explain food security.

Table 7 Eigen vectors

The findings reveal that in the rural areas in Jharkhand, per capita value of agricultural output in terms of cereal crops is one of the important indicators that determines food and nutrition security status of the districts. The second important indicator or policy variable for food and nutrition security is the percentage of workers other than agricultural labourers. If the agricultural labourers have shifted from agricultural sector to non-agricultural sector without reducing the productivity, this would indicate a higher food security status. Female literacy rate is the third important factor determining food security because more aware the mother is, better will be the decision-making and care practices as well as involvement in job market. This directly or indirectly ensures more food security for the household. Availability of health institutions in the locality is the next factor in rank of importance. Higher the density and access to PHCs/CHCs, higher will be the food security of the household. Access to improved toilet and urbanization are the other key determining factors. Higher the level of urbanization, higher will be the access to basic services and marketing, and the farmers can more easily access different agricultural inputs (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1

Source Computed by the IHD research team

Priority indicators for food and nutrition security in Jharkhand.

In Bihar, the availability of other than agricultural labour is the most important policy variable that determines food and nutrition security. The processing of agricultural products will be high if there is a higher scope of non-agricultural employment in rural areas. The non-dependency ratio is the second most important policy variable which determines the food security status of the districts. The third important factor determining food security is the female literacy rate. The fourth determining variable is the low prevalence of diseases among children. The extent of irrigation and availability of health institutions, assessed here in terms of the number of PHCs per lakh population, are also the key determining variables that explain the variability in food security outcomes (Fig. 2).

Fig. 2

Source Computed by the IHD research team

Priority indicators for food and nutrition security in Bihar.

4.7 Identifying the Priority Districts

The priority districts are those districts which fall in the ‘insecure’ and ‘highly insecure’ categories of FSI and FSO. The districts termed as ‘alarming’ are those which are ‘insecure’ or ‘highly insecure’ both in FSO and FSI. These districts need attention on an urgent basis for development interventions for enhancing food security (Table 8).

Table 8 Priority districts for food security intervention in rural Jharkhand and Bihar

In Jharkhand, the food security condition of Dumka, Deoghar, Pashchimi Singhbhum, Jamtara, Pakur, and Sahibganj districts is found to be the most alarming. The rest of the priority districts which need high attention in terms of food security indicators are Khunti, Chatra, Garhwa, and Godda. On the other hand, the districts of Bokaro, Latehar, Ramgarh, and Saraikela-Kharsawan are the most insecure in terms of outcome indicators and also need more attention.

In Bihar, the districts where the food security condition is found to be alarming are Sitamarhi, Saharsa, Banka, Madhepura, Gaya, Purnia, Araria, and Jamui. The districts which need high attention in Bihar in terms of food security input variables are Purba Champaran Samastipur, Madhubani, Kishanganj, Katihar, Darbhanga, and Supaul. These districts are in the food insecure category in terms of FSI. The districts which are insecure in terms of outcome indicators and need high attention are Katihar, Munger, Nalanda, Jehanabad, Nawada, Lakhisarai, and Arwal.

4.8 Comparative Significance of Food Security Policy Variables

To examine the degree of influence exercised by different variables on the food security scenario in both the states, the strength of the relationship of the food security (input) and food security (outcome) indices to the three component indices, as well as the inter-relationship of the aggregate input and outcome indices have been analysed using the correlation method. In both rural Jharkhand and Bihar, the correlation between utilization index and availability index is high whereas the correlation between utilization index and access index is very low. The FSI also has a high degree of correlation at 1% degree of significance with the availability, and utilization index for both Bihar and Jharkhand. The FSO index is also significantly negatively correlated with FSI in both states (Table 9).

Table 9 Inter-correlation matrix of input and outcome components of food security indices of rural Jharkhand

It will be useful to see the inter-relationships between the individual food security variables and the aggregate FSI (input) to assess the strength of the relationship of these variables with the FSI.

• Food Availability Index

In Jharkhand, the variables which have been used to develop the Food Availability Index are rainfall variability, per capita value of cereal output, percentage of net irrigated area to net sown area, and urbanization. All four variables reveal a very strong correlation especially rainfall variability (0.732) and urbanization (0.689) with Food Availability Index. Again, the indicators dependency ratio and MPCE, which have been taken for the access dimension, have a strong correlation with Food Availability Index. Female literacy rate also has a strong relation with Food Availability Index.

In Bihar, per capita value of agricultural output (r = 0.644), irrigation coverage percentage (r = 0.746), percentage of villages with access to town (r = 0.525), female literacy (r = 0.458) and percentage of households with access to improved non-shared toilet (r = 0.237) have a strong and positive correlation with the Food Availability Index. Since these variables are of key importance for the availability component of food security, to strengthen food security in both these states, policy formulations need to put an equally strong emphasis on the measures that specifically address these variables (Table 10).

Table 10 Correlation matrix of the food security index and indicators in Jharkhand and Bihar

• Access to Food Index

In Jharkhand, the level of urbanization has a strong correlation with Access Index. Among the six indicators used for Access Index, four indicators—the proportion of agricultural labourers, dependency ratio, MPCE, and access to paved road—have a strong correlation with Access to Food Index. The other variables like urbanization (r = 0.576) which is in the Food Availability Index and female literacy (r = 0.433) rate which is in the Food Utilization Index have a high degree of correlation with the Access to Food Index.

In Bihar, the correlation of the individual component variables with the Access to Food Index shows that out of six indicators, percentage of agricultural labourers (r = 0.666), casual wage rate (r = 0.506), and percentage of villages with access to the paved road (r = 0.440) have a high degree of correlation with Access to Food Index. The variables such as urbanization and female literacy have a high degree of correlation with the Access to Food Index.

The result reveals that the proportion of agricultural workers has quite a high correlation with the Access to Food Index. Further, female literacy rate, casual wage rate, and the ratio of working-age population also play an important role in the case of access to food security. Hence, we need to take into account these variables in the policy support to improve the food security situation in the state (Table 10).

• Food Utilization Index

In Jharkhand, Food Utilization Index has a strong correlation with the indicators viz., female literacy, access to sanitation, number of PHCs and CHCs, and disease behaviour. All these variables are part of Food Utilization Index. Per capita value of agricultural output, which is an indicator in the Food Availability Index, also has a strong correlation with the Food Utilization Index.

In Bihar, out of five indicators used in the Food Utilization Index, four variables such as female literacy rate, number of PHCs/CHCs per lakh population, disease and health behaviour, and percentage of households with access to improved non-shared toilet have a high degree of correlation with the Food Utilization Index. Access to safe drinking water has a very low correlation with the Food Utilization Index. It is interesting to note that three indicators, i.e. per capita value of agricultural output, net irrigated area to net sown area, and percentage of villages with access to town have a high degree of correlation with the Food Utilization Index. Also, the indicator used in the access index, i.e. the percentage of agricultural labour to the total worker has a high degree of correlation with the Food Utilization Index (Table 10).

5 Conclusions and Policy Implications

This study has used disaggregate-level data to examine the extent and dimensions of food security at the district level in Jharkhand and Bihar using various indicators from secondary data sources. The findings from this study show that there are large inter-district inequalities across all the three dimensions of food security, i.e. availability, accessibility, and utilization. Tables 11 and 12 in the Appendix provide the ranking of the districts on all dimensions of food security. The agricultural economy in both Bihar and Jharkhand is at a very low level of development, the former performing better than the latter. As a result, both the states have been considered food deficit states. Of Bihar’s 38 districts, 22 are on the priority list. Districts flagged off as showing alarming levels of food insecurity based on both input and outcome indicators are: Sitamarhi, Saharsa, Banka, Madhepura, Gaya, Purnia, Araria, and Jamui.

Among the 24 districts of Jharkhand, 14 are on the priority list. Region-wise, the entire belt of the Santhal Pargana region has been marked as ‘alarming’ in terms of its food insecurity situation. All the districts of the Santhal Pargana region, except Godda, have been flagged off as exhibiting alarming levels of food insecurity based on both input and outcome indicators. The food insecurity situation of Dumka, Deoghar, Jamtara, Pakur, and Sahibganj districts from the Santhal Pargana region and Pashchimi Singhbhum district belonging to the Kolhan region has been marked as ‘alarming’. Even Godda district from the Santhal Pargana region has been categorized among the districts ‘needing high attention’ in terms of food security input variables. The districts of Jamtara, Godda, and Pakur suffer from poor food availability with the per capita value of agricultural output (cereals) being low due to high rainfall variability coupled with low intensity of irrigation available. The urbanization rates in these districts are also very low. The districts of Sahibganj, Dumka, Godda, Pakur, and Pashchimi Singhbhum suffer from poor access to food with monthly per capita consumption expenditure being very low owing to high percentage of agricultural labourers in Dumka, Godda, and Sahibganj, weekly causal wages being low and dependency ratio being high in Sahibganj and percentage of STs being high in Pashchimi Singhbhum who have an overall lower socioeconomic condition. Lower percentage of villages have access to paved roads in Godda and Pakur districts. The districts of Deoghar, Godda, Pakur, and Pashchimi Singhbhum suffer from poor utilization of food with female literacy rates being low in Deoghar, Godda, Pashchimi Singhbhum, and Pakur districts and access to improved toilet facility being poor in Pashchimi Singhbhum, Deoghar, and Pakur districts. Pashchimi Singhbhum additionally suffers from a lack of access to safe drinking water and as a result exhibits high prevalence of diseases like diarrhoea which results in poor utilization or absorption of food. The most food-secure districts of Jharkhand are Purbi Singhbhum, Ranchi, Dhanbad, Hazaribagh, and Ramgarh. All these districts are mining-industrial, highly urbanized and developed districts. Together, they form the development corridor of Jharkhand.

The paper has also identified the critical variables which need the utmost attention for ensuring food security in rural areas of Bihar and Jharkhand. The findings reveal that in Jharkhand, per capita value of agricultural output in terms of cereals, percentage of casual labourers in non-agricultural pursuits, female literacy rate, availability of basic health infrastructure in rural areas measured here in terms of number of PHCs/CHCs per lakh population, and access to improved and non-shared toilet facility are crucial indicators that determine the food security status in the rural parts of the districts. In the case of Bihar, the important policy variables that shape the food security status of the districts are the percentage of non-agricultural labourers, non-dependency ratio, female literacy rate, non-prevalence of disease and health behaviour, irrigation facilities, and availability of basic health infrastructure in rural areas, i.e. density of PHCs/CHCs per lakh population.

Overall, the policy focus in this region, comprising Bihar and Jharkhand, should be concentrated in expanding availability of food through better irrigation facilities in this otherwise rainfed region which suffers from high rainfall variability year-on-year, increasing access to food through provision of employment opportunities in non-farm sector which in turn will better the economic dependency ratio, increase the casual wages, and eventually augment the MPCE. Expanding jobs under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is one such way of providing employment opportunities in rural areas apart from expanding investment in allied sectors, i.e. fishing, livestock rearing, food processing, and processing of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) in case of Jharkhand. Such an investment will also lead to employment in service sectors such as storage and transport.

The focus should also be on improving the utilization or absorption of food through enhancing the provision of basic health infrastructure, safe drinking water, and access to improved toilet facilities which will reduce the prevalence of diseases like diarrhoea. Improvement of female literacy rates is crucial for the entire region which will go a long way in enriching the households’ nutritional intakes owing to better exposure and knowledge about healthy diet, sanitation and hygiene practices, and health behaviour. It can also improve the purchasing power of the household and, in turn, enhance their MPCE. Literacy and adult literacy programmes should be undertaken in priority districts to begin with.

Distribution of millets through PDS can further enhance the nutritional outcomes of the households. Millets, being drought-resistant crop, are most suited for cultivation in these rainfed regions, particularly Jharkhand, with limited irrigation facilities. Jharkhand Government has launched the Millets Mission on priority basis. For the most food insecure areas, there should be procurement of millets for distribution through the PDS. There is also increasing demands for millets in the urban areas, the packaging and processing of which gives additional employment and income opportunities in the food insecure areas of the states.

The identification of priority districts and highlighting the policy variables, which are crucial in such food insecure districts which require urgent attention, can go a long way in providing a detailed roadmap for appropriate government interventions in the insecure districts to improve their condition of food security.

Appendix

Table 11 Ranks of districts on composite food security index and its components in Jharkhand

Table 12 Ranks of districts on composite food security index and its components in Bihar