The Hidden Divide: A Note on the Significance of Within-India Stunting Disparities

India and sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are home to 70% of the globe’s stunted children. We show that, one, the oft-explored paradox of higher stunting incidence in relatively richer India compared to the poorer countries of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) masks the much larger gaps between major social groups (caste and tribe) in India. Two, when restricting the comparison to the non-stigmatized caste group children to the SSA children, the paradox disappears. Three, accounting for factors identified as explaining the India-SSA height gradient together can explain at most half of the differences among the caste groups in India. Our findings suggest that accounting for the role of caste or social identity is crucial in combating childhood stunting in India.