New Delhi, Nov 13 : Child malnutrition - a serious issue facing India today - is a gender issue because it is mostly related to women, said health experts and government officials at a panel discussion in the capital Friday.

According to Karin Hulshof, representative of Unicef in India, there are three main reasons why malnutrition is a gender issue.

"Firstly, malnutrition affects women more - whether in the adolescent stage, when she is a young mother and lactating later. Secondly, the vicious cycle of malnutrition follows a malnourished adolescent girl to her becoming a malnourished mother and then she giving birth to an undernourished child," Hulshof said.

"Also it is seen that in all those places where women have a higher autonomy, are more empowered, the level of child malnutrition is low," she added.

According to the National Family Health Survey, 46 percent of children under the age of three are underweight and 70 percent kids under five are anaemic.

Minister of State for Communication and IT Sachin Pilot said that malnutrition should not be looked as a social or health issue only.

"Child malnutrition is a big economic issue. India is a young country and if today's children are malnourished, then they will be an economic burden tomorrow," he said.

Stressing that the issue, therefore, needs to be taken as a priority by all and not just the government, Pilot added: "Child nourishment must be made a political issue on which elections are dependent. Only then will all political parties give it the deserved priority".

Sayeeda Hameed, member of the Planning Commission, said the women and child development ministry and the health ministry should converge their ideas to solve the challenges of malnourishment.

Women and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath said Nov 14-19 will be celebrated as the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Week in order to take the ICDS scheme to more women across the country so that they can reap its benefits.

"Nov 14 is Children's Day and Nov 19 is our late prime minister, who started the ICDS scheme, Indira Gandhi's birthday. Between these two significant dates, the main features of the ICDS scheme will be highlighted," she said.

The ICDS scheme serves children during the early childhood years and pregnant and lactating mothers.(IANS)