The world is finally witnessing a decline in chronic undernourishment, and India is at the heart of this progress. According to the UN’s 2025 Food Security Report, global hunger fell to 8.2% in 2024, with India contributing significantly through innovative policies and digital reforms.

India’s Public Distribution System (PDS) has been revolutionized with Aadhaar-enabled access, real-time tracking, and the One Nation One Ration Card, ensuring food security for over 800 million citizens—even during the pandemic. This shift has reduced undernourishment in India from 14.3% in 2020–22 to 12% in 2022–24, meaning 30 million fewer people go hungry.

But while India has secured calories, nutrition remains a challenge. Over 40% of Indians still find healthy diets unaffordable due to high costs of fruits, vegetables, and protein-rich foods. To overcome this, India is focusing on school nutrition programs, promoting climate-resilient crops, investing in cold storage, and empowering women-led food enterprises.

As the world races toward the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, India’s leadership in transforming its agrifood system could be the key. The question is, can India now shift from feeding millions to nourishing them?