Explained | SEHAT Mission: An effort to address malnutrition and rising non communicable disease burden

The SEHAT Mission represents India's effort to shift from focusing only on treatment but also on prevention, early detection and continuous care.

Stunting and obesity coexist in India. This double burden of malnutrition has been a significant contributor to the rising incidence of non-communicable diseases in our country. 

The SEHAT Mission (Science Excellence for Health through Agricultural Transformation), a joint effort by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), aims to unify both sectors to bridge nutritional gaps currently present in the Indian diet. 

For decades, India's main agricultural focus was to ensure “food security” ensuring no one remained hungry. We achieved producing high quantities of grain, but ignored the silent crisis: hidden hunger. Despite eating a complete meal, majority Indians lack essential nutrients, vitamins and micronutrients in their daily diet. 

The mission aims to build a framework for developing a healthy India, powered by healthy farms and healthy food. It will focus on adopting the ‘one health’ approach, a collaborative effort across domains like public health, veterinary medicine, and environmental sciences to create more preventive health-focused solutions.

This initiative also demonstrates that India is moving towards a proactive rather than a reactive health approach. Union Health Minister, JP Nadda, at the launch on May 11, said, “The SEHAT Mission represents a major transformation in India’s policy-making approach, where the government is no longer focusing only on treatment but also on prevention, early detection and continuous care.”

He noted that India must develop indigenous solutions rooted in its own scientific research, institutional experience, and evidence-based practices. “Low-cost, high-quality and scientifically validated solutions will be the most useful for the country, and ICMR is committed to working in this direction,” Nadda said.

How SEHAT Mission will change food, farming, and healthcare

Under the mission, the ICAR and ICMR will collaborate and create a scientific chain connecting farms, food plates, and public health.

The initiative will work towards improving the health and safety of farmers and agricultural labourers to reduce risk from exposure to pesticides, imbalanced use of chemicals, and hazardous conditions faced during agricultural work.

It also seeks to establish stronger institutional coordination between agriculture and medical research systems so that food production, public nutrition, and disease prevention can be addressed through integrated planning and scientific collaboration.

It will focus on:

• bio-fortified crops

• nutrient-rich food products

• integrated farming systems

• health and safety measures for farmers

• dietary solutions for lifestyle diseases

The initiative is expected to

• improve nutritional quality

• reduce hidden hunger and micronutrient deficiencies

• prevent non-communicable diseases

• better health and safety for farmers

• develop sustainable food systems