India has made significant progress in improving food availability and reducing extreme hunger, but malnutrition remains a complex public-health challenge. The problem increasingly requires us to look beyond the question of whether people have access to food and examine whether they have access to nutritious, diverse and affordable diets.

Calories provide energy, but the human body requires much more. Iron is essential for healthy blood and cognitive development; vitamin A supports vision and immunity; iodine is critical for brain development; protein supports growth and repair; and a range of vitamins and minerals are needed for metabolic and immune functions. When diets are dominated by inexpensive staples while lacking fruits, vegetables, pulses, dairy, eggs or other nutrient-rich foods, people can consume enough calories while remaining deficient in essential micronutrients.

This creates what is often described as the “hidden hunger” problem. It can exist without the visible signs traditionally associated with starvation. A child may receive enough food to avoid immediate hunger but still experience impaired growth because the diet lacks essential nutrients. An adolescent may eat regular meals while developing iron-deficiency anaemia. An adult may consume enough calories while having a diet that is poor in micronutrients.

The consequences extend beyond individual health. Malnutrition can affect children’s physical growth, learning and development, women’s health, productivity and household economic security. For this reason, India’s nutrition challenge cannot be addressed through food distribution alone.

The answer lies in connecting availability, affordability, accessibility, awareness and dietary diversity.

Food and nutrition programmes can be designed to include locally available nutrient-rich foods, nutrition education, screening for deficiencies, maternal and adolescent nutrition support, kitchen or community gardens, and stronger linkages between communities and local health services.

The larger lesson is simple: food security asks whether people have enough food; nutrition security asks whether that food enables people to thrive.

India’s next nutrition challenge is therefore not merely putting more food on the plate. It is making sure that the plate contains the nutrition required for a healthier generation.