Access through your institution Buy or subscribe I read the correspondence by Sachdev et al. [1]. The contents were rather harsh, and they continued to present incorrect arguments to justify

their decision to discontinue the universal VAS programme in India. The authors have deliberately avoided direct evidence-based responses to the queries raised in my previous correspondence

[2]. Before responding to each of their new queries, I wish to state for the readers of the journal that the “Vitamin A Supplementation Programme for Prophylaxis Against Nutritional

Blindness among Children in India” is very much alive even though the strong advocacy by the expert committee of the sub-group on vitamin A policy (SGVAP) to convince the Ministry of Health

and WhatsApp mode by one of the Expert Committee members. This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution ACCESS OPTIONS Access through your institution Subscribe to

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support DATA AVAILABILITY Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey (CNNS) National Report 2016-8. https://nhm.gov.in/WriteReadData/l892s/1405796031571201348.pdf. REFERENCES * Sachdev HS,

Reddy GB, Pullakhandam R, Ghosh S, Rajkumar H, Kurpad AV A vicious turn to the saga of vitamin A deficiency in India. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2023. * Arlappa N. Dismantling five decades of public

health policy with spurious interpretation of a single study may relapse nutritional blindness among vulnerable children in India. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2023;77:140–1. Article  PubMed  Google

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reflect on the need for vitamin A supplementation. Am J Clin Nutr. 2021;113:939–47. Article  PubMed  Google Scholar  * Singh P, Nigam A. The time is not right for a change to the vitamin A

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Flawed analyses and historical data inflate vitamin A deficiency in India to misdirect policy. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2023;77:138–9. Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar  * Comprehensive National

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2021. * International Institute of Population Science. National Family Health Survey India 2015–2016: India fact sheet. Mumbai: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India;

2016. Download references AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * Scientist-G, Division of Public Health Nutrition, ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad, India Nimmathota

Arlappa Authors * Nimmathota Arlappa View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar CONTRIBUTIONS All contributions were from a single author.

CORRESPONDING AUTHOR Correspondence to Nimmathota Arlappa. ETHICS DECLARATIONS COMPETING INTERESTS The author declares no competing interests. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PUBLISHER’S NOTE

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THIS ARTICLE Arlappa, N. Discontinuing five decades of vitamin A supplementation policy in India without valid scientific evidence: A step in Haste. _Eur J Clin Nutr_ 78, 362–363 (2024).

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-023-01374-9 Download citation * Received: 14 April 2023 * Revised: 14 November 2023 * Accepted: 16 November 2023 * Published: 28 November 2023 * Issue Date:

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