The Starving Heartland

AID's newsletter mentions this rather alarming fact:

Chhattisgarh, known as the rice bowl of India, is home to more than 22,000 varieties of indigeous rice, nurtured by generations of farmers. And yet, today Chhattisgarh is among the most food insecure states of the country. Median Body weight and Body Mass Index figures seen in rural Chhattisgarh are worse than Sub-Saharan Africa.

(Emphasis mine.)