Food Insecurity Atlas of Orissa
VAM Unit, World Food Programme, 53 Jorbagh, New Delhi 110091. Tel - 91-11-4694381 Fax - 4627109
May 2000
Foreword
This first edition of the Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping of food insecurity related indicators of Orissa is intended to provide guidance on the targeting of future food security development projects in Orissa. It is the result of a considerable process of consultation, review and improvement. We are grateful for the valuable comments given by those who have already read the document. We believe improvement is a continuous process and would incorporate these changes in our forthcoming initiatives. This process does not stop with this edition and the World Food Programme in New Delhi would be grateful to receive your comments and inputs (ref: VAM unit, WFP, 53 Jor Bagh, N. Delhi, fax: 91-11-462.3422).
We wish to emphasise that the collection and mapping of secondary sources of information provides only part of the story of food insecurity. We are in the process of collecting primary data from villagers and communities and key officials in the state of Orissa. We believe this combination of primary and secondary data will more wisely inform both our analysis of the situation food insecure people live and perhaps most importantly assist in identifying development programmes which will have maximum positive impact on their lives. We are looking for partners in all these activities and should your organisation be interested in partnering with WFP, please contact us.
Finally we would like to thank the following persons and organization for collaborating in the production of this document: Government of Orissa, Dr. Dipendranath Das, and Professor Amitabh Kundu, CSRD, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
VAM Unit,
Regional Office for Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka
53 Jor bagh
New Delhi
May 2000
ContentsExecutive Summary
List of tables
List of Maps
CHAPTER – I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Objectives of VAM
1.2 The proposed assignment
1.3 Study Plan
1.4 Vulnerability Index for regional analysis
1.5 Composite Index.
1.6 Cartographic Methodology
1.7 Thematic mapping
1.8 Limitation of the Study
CHAPTER – II INTRODUCTION TO THE STATE
2.1 Physiography
2.2 Climate
2.3 Area, People & Culture
2.4 Population & Demography
2.5 Economy
CHAPTER – III INDICATORS
3.1 Sustenance Insecurity
3.1.a Population supported by cereal production
3.1.b Seasonality
3.1.c Food as percentage of household expenditure
3.1.d Inadequacy of safety net system
3.1.e Composite Sustenance Insecurity Index
3.2 Disaster
3.2.a Cattle & Crop loss due to natural disaster
3.2.b Disaster proneness
3.2.c Composite Disaster
3.3 Deprivation
3.3.a Percentage of Population below Poverty Line
3.3.b Scheduled Caste population.
3.3.c Scheduled Tribe population.
3.3.d Out Migration.
3.3.e Illiteracy
3.3.f Agricultural labourer
3.3.g Working children
3.3.h Composite Deprivation index
3.4 Gender Inequality
3.4.a Disparity in literacy
3.4.b Disparity in IMR
3.4.c Disparity in CMR
3.4.d Sex ratio
3.4.e Composite gender inequality index
3.5 Malnutrition & Mortality
3.5.a Infant Mortality Rate
3.5.b Child Mortality Rate
3.4.c Prevalence of Malnutrition under 5
3.5.d Population supported by AWC
3.5.e Composite Malnutrition & Mortality Index
CHAPTER – IV COMPOSITE INDEX
4.1 Composite Vulnerability Index with all Broad categories
4.2 Interrelationship of Indicators
4.3 Rationale behind the selection of Indicators
4.4 Composite index with selected indicators
4.5 Safety net coverage
CHAPTER – V COPING STRATEGY
Annex
Annex I Reference
Annex II Data Source
Annex III Tables
Annex IV Additional Indicators
List Of Maps
1. Location Map of Orissa/Index Map2. Block map of Orissa
3. Agro-ecological Zones of Orissa
4. Population Supported by Cereal Production
5. Seasonality in Cereal Production
6. Inadequacy of Safety Net System
7. Composite Sustenance Insecurity Index
8. Cattle and Crop loss due to disaster
9. Disaster Proneness
10. Composite Disaster Index
11. Households below Poverty Line.
12. Distribution of Scheduled Caste Population
13. Distribution of Scheduled Tribe Population
14. Net Out Migration
15. Illiteracy Rate
16. Percentage of Agricultural Labourer
17. Working Children
18. Composite Deprivation Index
19. Gender Disparity in Literacy
20. Gender Disparity in IMR
21. Gender Disparity in CMR
22. Sex Ratio
23. Composite Gender Inequality Index
24. Infant Mortality Rate
25. Child Mortality Rate
26. Prevalence of malnutrition among under 5 Years
27. Population supported by Anganwadi centre
28. Composite Mortality and Malnutrition Index
29. Composite Vulnerability Index with Broad Categories
List of Tables
1. Basic Demographic Indicators2. Population Supported by Cereal Production
3. Seasonality in Cereal Production
4. Inadequacy of Safety Net System
5. Sustenance Insecurity Index
6. Cattle and Crop loss index
7. Disaster Proneness
8. Disaster Index
9. Household below Poverty Line.
10. Distribution of Scheduled Caste Population
11. Block Level Data (Table 9A, 10A, 11A, 13A, 14A & 17A)
12. Distribution of Scheduled Tribe Population
13. Net Out Migration
14. Illiteracy Rate
15. Percentage of Agricultural Labourer
16. Working Children
17. Deprivation Index
18. Gender Disparity in Literacy
19. Gender Disparity in IMR
20. Gender Disparity in CMR
21. Sex Ratio
22. Gender Inequality Index
23. Infant Mortality Rate
24. Child Mortality Rate
25. Prevalence of malnutrition among under 5 Years
26. Population supported by Anganwadi centre
27. Mortality and Malnutrition Index
28. Composite Vulnerability Index with all Broad Categories
29. Interrelationship of the indicators
30. Composite Vulnerability Index with Selected Indicators.
31. Pattern of Safety net coverage
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The state of Orissa inspite of being endowed with vast natural resources has remained the second poorest state in the country (next to Bihar), the reason for its backwardness can be attributed to natural, social and economic factors. Extensive land degradation due to erosion, salinity, damage due to natural disaster like drought, floods and a super cyclones can be classified under the natural causes. The high percentage of Schedule Tribe population, low level of literacy, wide spread unemployment in rural Orissa with almost 44 percent of people living below poverty line has worsened the situation.
It is quite revealing that while all the neighbouring states of Orissa have improved their performance in planning and have been able to reduce percentage of population living below the poverty line, in case of Orissa the figure has increased. Poverty gets manifested thorough high mortality and low nutrition level. This is absolutely true for a state like Orissa, which has highest infant mortality rate and second highest child mortality rate in the major states of India. Acute under nutrition is also a common phenomenon in Orissa.
The objective behind the WFP project on Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping is to improve the effectiveness of its programme by reliably identifying food insecure areas and hungry population and targeting them for food assistance. The project has two distinctive phases:
1. Vulnerability analysis and mapping of food insecurity from secondary data.
2. Preparation of vulnerability profiles through community level assessment.
The present study involves the identification of the food insecure areas and locating them spatially. The indicators chosen for identification of vulnerability are either reasons for food insecurity or the manifestation of the same. The indicators are conventional and during measurement all of them have been made unidirectional so that higher value reflects higher vulnerability. The very conventional sex ratio has been measured here as number of males per female so that high value represents vulnerability. Along with the measurement of individual indicators the broad input variables and output variables have been grouped together to recognise the composite vulnerability. However the safety net variables were kept out of the composite vulnerability as they control vulnerability. The qualitative information that was collected from various reports on Orissa has supplemented the findings from the secondary data analysis.
In the five broad categories of vulnerability sustenance insecurity and the disaster are the one that deals with the component of availability. Here disaster loss, population supported for cereal production and seasonality of cereal production was taken up. It has been found that the interior districts of Orissa are vulnerable to sustenance, and disaster. The coastal districts although are exposed to cyclones and floods are comparatively less vulnerable to disaster and sustenance insecurity.
The third broad category deals with the accessibility component of vulnerability where below poverty line population, scheduled caste and tribe population, illiterates and agricultural labourers etc. have been considered. The broad composite index indicates that the tribal and interior districts are the deprived district inspite of being endowed with rich mineral resources.
The fifth category reflects the utilisation aspect of food and nutrition and deals with malnourished children, IMR and CMR. It has been observed that malnutrition and mortality is more prevalent in the coastal districts and is less in the northern region.
The analysis is comprehensive and gives an overview of the situation. The variations and deviations from the expected results cannot be justified based on the secondary data. An in depth field study is required to understand the regional variations and the causes of such variations. But certainly this overview invokes the interest of further probing to realise the ground reality.
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Background
Families facing chronic food insecurity are caught in a hunger trap. The inadequacy and uncertainty of their food supply make it difficult for them to take advantage of development opportunities. The special niche of the World Food Programme is to enable poor people to access the benefits of development by making food available to the most vulnerable and food insecure groups.
Presently, the focus of assistance of WFP is directed towards poor children and women to meet their special nutritional and health needs and towards the Scheduled caste and tribe who depend upon degraded natural resources for their food security.
1.1 Objectives of Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (VAM)
The principal objective of VAM is to increase the effectiveness of WFP aid programming by improving the understanding of the structure of food security and vulnerability to food insecurity. Such an understanding permits WFP to (1) accurately identify food insecure areas and populations, (2) design food aid interventions that effectively address the needs of these people, and (3) improve the assistance of food to them.
WFP in India has set up a VAM Unit with a view to support the country office for effective monitoring and decision making. Indicators were selected to measure the aspects of poverty and deprivation. These indicators were aggregated and weighted into five broad sectors, viz., (i) Sustenance Insecurity (ii) Disasters, (iii) Deprivation & Gender Inequality (iv) Malnutrition & Mortality. Vulnerability in food and nutrition is identified as a complex manifestation of the behaviour of these indicators where a certain section of the population are more susceptible to adopt a worse coping mechanism if these indicators behave in a negative manner. With the above mentioned objectives, VAM effectively explores the population of intervention where poor food and market situation, worse poverty and gender dimension, health and nutrition situation and ill developed disaster management operates.
1.2 The Proposed Assignment
The objective of the proposed assignment is to spatially assess the current vulnerability of the blocks/districts on the basis of 20 individual indicators as well as on the basis of the four broad categories. The map generated through the proposed study would depict the relative level of development among the different districts/blocks. These maps will be used by WFP for programme formulation, decision making and monitoring
1.3 Study Plan
The study clearly involves the following tasks:
1. Data collection,
2. Data compilation,
3. Preparing the Vulnerability Index
4. Mapping the data
5. Presentation of an analysis
6. Identify and locate the vulnerable areas spatially.
In a closed system, where there is no intervention from the market or government the agricultural production is the most important determinant of food supply. The seasonality of cereal production also affects the supply over different season of the year. However, in the age of democracy the scenario of food supply is influenced by the market mechanism and government intervention.
Another important component that ensures the food availability is the household income, which helps to procure food from the market. In a welfare state however at the time of food insecurity or at period of crisis, to keep steady food supply, the government intervenes through different ways. Nowadays the non-governmental developmental organisations also join hands with the government in these intervention works. Natural disaster affects food production and influences availability of food. Therefore agricultural productivity, its seasonality, income of the households, government/non-government intervention (safety net) and natural disaster can be considered as the direct / proximate determinants of food and nutrition status.
There are some variables that have very complex relationship and exert their influences in a multidimensional way, which are very difficult to explain. E.g. a literate person would have a better understanding of agricultural practice and disaster management, which would result in less vulnerability to disaster and better agricultural production. This would ensure easy availability of food, presuming the absence of any market mechanism or government intervention. A literate person would also ensure a better job and earn a better livelihood and will be capable of ensuring steady food supply from the market. The level of literacy also determines productivity and quality of the labourers.
The core indicators were pre selected for the study and here the scope is limited to discuss all the relationships of the variables in details. The indicators selected for the study are as follows:
Broad Categories / Individual IndicatorsSustenance Insecurity
/ 1. Population supported by cereal production.2. Seasonality in Cereal Production.
3. Inadequacy of Safety Net System.
Broad Categories / Individual Indicators
Disasters
/4. Cattle loss and Crop loss index
5. Disaster Proneness
Deprivation
/ 6. Population below Poverty Line7. Scheduled Caste Population Index
8. Scheduled Tribe Population Index
9. Net Out Migration Index
10. Illiteracy Index
11. Agricultural Labourer Index
/12. Working Children Index
Gender
/13. Gender Disparity in Literacy
Inequality /14. Gender Disparity in Infant Mortality Rate
/15. Gender Disparity in Child Mortality Rate
/16. Sex Ratio
Mortality / 17. Infant Mortality Rate (IMR)& Malnutrition / 18. Child Mortality Rate (CMR)
19. Prevalence of Malnutrition
20. Population Supported by Anganwadi Center
1.4 Vulnerability Index For Regional Analysis: