- India faces a massive burden of anaemia, impacting human capital formation, productivity, and maternal-child health. - Despite ambitious national frameworks like Anaemia Mukt Bharat, policy interventions suffer due to gaps in data collection, monitoring, and regular tracking mechanisms. - The absence of reliable, high-frequency data hinders evidence-based policymaking and targeted resource allocation to combat malnutrition and anaemia. - Addressing malnutrition and anaemia requires robust administrative data systems alongside large-scale periodic surveys to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty and poor health. - **Anaemia Mukt Bharat (AMB):** An umbrella national initiative launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in 2018 to reduce anaemia prevalence across vulnerable demographics using a comprehensive multi-pronged strategy. - **National Family Health Survey (NFHS):** A comprehensive nationwide household survey providing essential data on health, family welfare, fertility, mortality, and nutritional indicators including anaemia across India. - **Ministry of Health and Family Welfare:** The nodal union ministry responsible for formulating and implementing national health policies, family welfare schemes, and public health initiatives across India. **Introduction** The article examines India's pervasive anaemia crisis, highlighting how ambitious national initiatives like Anaemia Mukt Bharat are undermined by the lack of robust, continuous data to measure progress, evaluate outcomes, and target interventions effectively. **Core Issue and Detailed Points** - India faces a massive burden of anaemia, impacting human capital formation, productivity, and maternal-child health. - Despite ambitious national frameworks like Anaemia Mukt Bharat, policy interventions suffer due to gaps in data collection, monitoring, and regular tracking mechanisms. - The absence of reliable, high-frequency data hinders evidence-based policymaking and targeted resource allocation to combat malnutrition and anaemia. - Addressing malnutrition and anaemia requires robust administrative data systems alongside large-scale periodic surveys to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty and poor health. **Key Statutory Bodies, Acts & Concepts** - **Anaemia Mukt Bharat (AMB):** An umbrella national initiative launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in 2018 to reduce anaemia prevalence across vulnerable demographics using a comprehensive multi-pronged strategy. - **National Family Health Survey (NFHS):** A comprehensive nationwide household survey providing essential data on health, family welfare, fertility, mortality, and nutritional indicators including anaemia across India. - **Ministry of Health and Family Welfare:** The nodal union ministry responsible for formulating and implementing national health policies, family welfare schemes, and public health initiatives across India.