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India’s Fertility Rate Remains Steady At 2.0, Child Stunting Declines
NEW DELHI: The National Family Health Survey-6 (NFHS-6) released by the Union health ministry on Friday showed that India’s total fertility rate remained unchanged at 2.0 children per woman as in NFHS-5. This rate was 1.6 in urban areas and 2.1 in rural areas.
The survey also showed that the birth control prevalence rate increased from 66.7 percent to 69.1 percent.
NFHS-6 has seen significant improvements in maternal and child health services across the country. While approximately 95.9 percent of pregnant women received prenatal care, the proportion of mothers receiving prenatal care in the first three months increased from 70 percent to 76.2 percent. The percentage of mothers who received at least four prenatal care visits also increased from 58.5 percent to 65.2 percent.
Full vaccination coverage among children aged 12 to 23 months increased from 83.8 percent in 2019-21 to 87.1 percent in 2023-24. The uptake of any vaccine among children in this age group has remained consistently high at over 96 percent.
Rotavirus vaccine coverage increased sharply from 36.4 percent to 85.4 percent, while coverage of the second dose of the measles-containing vaccine increased from 58.6 percent to 71.8 percent.
The survey also noted improvements in key child health indicators. Acute respiratory infection symptoms in children fell from 2.8 percent to 1.9 percent, while severe diarrhea in children under five fell from 0.7 percent to 0.5 percent.
NFHS-6 was conducted by the Ministry of Health during 2023-24, with the International Institute of Population Sciences, Mumbai, as the nodal agency. The survey covers around 6.79 lakh households across 715 districts and provides data on population, health, nutrition and family welfare indicators.
Stunting among children under five fell from 35.5 percent to 29.3 percent, while severe wasting fell from 7.7 percent to 5.2 percent. The prevalence of underweight children under five decreased marginally from 32.1 percent to 31.8 percent.
The study found that 95.6 percent of children under six months were breastfed. The proportion of children under three who were breastfed within one hour of birth increased from 41.8 percent to 50.1 percent.
Nutritional practices have also evolved; This rate increased from 45.9 percent to 59.5 percent when six to eight-month-old children received solid or semi-solid food along with breast milk.
The survey noted continued progress in women’s digital inclusion and financial empowerment. The proportion of women who had ever used the internet almost doubled, from 33.3 percent to 64.3 percent. The proportion of women with their own bank or savings account increased from 78.6 percent to 89 percent, and the proportion of women with their own mobile phones increased from 53.9 percent to 63.6 percent.
The rate of using hygienic menstrual methods among women aged 15-24 increased from 77.6 percent to 79.2 percent.
NFHS-6 has seen significant improvements in maternal and child health services across the country. While approximately 95.9 percent of pregnant women received prenatal care, the proportion of mothers receiving prenatal care in the first three months increased from 70 percent to 76.2 percent. The percentage of mothers who received at least four prenatal care visits also increased from 58.5 percent to 65.2 percent.
Full vaccination coverage among children aged 12 to 23 months increased from 83.8 percent in 2019-21 to 87.1 percent in 2023-24. The uptake of any vaccine among children in this age group has remained consistently high at over 96 percent.
Rotavirus vaccine coverage increased sharply from 36.4 percent to 85.4 percent, while coverage of the second dose of the measles-containing vaccine increased from 58.6 percent to 71.8 percent.
The survey also noted improvements in key child health indicators. Acute respiratory infection symptoms in children fell from 2.8 percent to 1.9 percent, while severe diarrhea in children under five fell from 0.7 percent to 0.5 percent.
NFHS-6 was conducted by the Ministry of Health during 2023-24, with the International Institute of Population Sciences, Mumbai, as the nodal agency. The survey covers around 6.79 lakh households across 715 districts and provides data on population, health, nutrition and family welfare indicators.
Stunting among children under five fell from 35.5 percent to 29.3 percent, while severe wasting fell from 7.7 percent to 5.2 percent. The prevalence of underweight children under five decreased marginally from 32.1 percent to 31.8 percent.
The study found that 95.6 percent of children under six months were breastfed. The proportion of children under three who were breastfed within one hour of birth increased from 41.8 percent to 50.1 percent.
Nutritional practices have also evolved; This rate increased from 45.9 percent to 59.5 percent when six to eight-month-old children received solid or semi-solid food along with breast milk.
The survey noted continued progress in women’s digital inclusion and financial empowerment. The proportion of women who had ever used the internet almost doubled, from 33.3 percent to 64.3 percent. The proportion of women with their own bank or savings account increased from 78.6 percent to 89 percent, and the proportion of women with their own mobile phones increased from 53.9 percent to 63.6 percent.
The rate of using hygienic menstrual methods among women aged 15-24 increased from 77.6 percent to 79.2 percent.
