The Economic Survey 2022-23 tabled today by Smt Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs has illustrated a significant improvement vis-à-vis 2015-16 in an array of indicators concerning the quality of rural lives, of which most health indicators have registered an impressive uptick. These outcome-oriented statistics establish tangible medium-run progress in rural living standards, aided by the policy focus on basic amenities and efficient programme implementation. This indicates the outcome of some of the important schemes/programmes of the Government in various areas to improve the quality of life in rural areas.
Quality of rural lives – findings from the National Family Health Survey 2019-21
As per the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 2019-21, various parameters related to maternal and child health have reported encouraging numbers (as below).
|
|
For Rural Areas |
NFHS 4 (2015-16) |
NFHS 5 (2019-21) |
|
Population
|
Sex ratio at birth for children born in the last five years (females per 1,000 males) |
927 |
|
|
Total fertility rate (children per woman) |
2.4 |
|
|
|
Health
|
Households with any usual member covered under a health insurance/financing scheme (per cent) |
28.9 |
|
|
Infant mortality rate |
46.0 |
|
|
|
Mothers who had an antenatal check-up in the first trimester (%) |
54.2 |
|
|
|
Mothers who consumed iron folic acid for 100 days or more when they were pregnant (per cent) |
25.9 |
|
|
|
Institutional births (per cent) |
75.1 |
|
|
|
Children aged 12-23 months fully vaccinated based on information from vaccination card only (per cent) |
61.3 |
|
|
|
Children aged 12-23 months who received most of their vaccinations in a public health facility (per cent) |
94.2 |
|
|
|
Prevalence of diarrhoea in the 2 weeks preceding the survey (per cent) |
9.6 |
|
|
|
Children under 5 years who are stunted (height-for-age) (per cent) |
41.2 |
|
|
|
Children under 5 years who are wasted (weight-for-height) (per cent) |
21.5 |
|
|
|
Children under 5 years who are underweight (weight-forage) (per cent) |
38.3 |
|
|
|
|
For Rural Areas |
NFHS 4 (2015-16) |
NFHS 5 (2019-21) |
|
|
Children age 6-23 months receiving an adequate diet |
8.8 |
|
|
Women whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is below normal (BMI <18.5 kg/ ) (per cent) |
26.7 |
|
|
|
Children aged 6-59 months who are anaemic (per cent) |
59.5 |
|
|
|
All women aged 15-49 years who are anaemic (per cent) |
54.3 |
|
|
|
Men aged 15-49 years who are anaemic (per cent) |
25.3 |
|
Source: National Family Health Surveys (NFHS) 2015-16 and 2019-21, MoHFW
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RM/MV/M/PS