Health of the Nation: India has made significant progress in safe childbirth and child vaccinations

ArmInfo. The Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, with the International Institute for Population Sciences, released NFHS-6 survey results showing significant progress in maternal and child healthcare, including increased institutional births to 90.6% and full child vaccinations to 87.1%. The report highlights advancements in women’s empowerment, such as 64.3% internet usage, alongside challenges like rising adult obesity and decreased exclusive breastfeeding rates. For detailed, localized information, refer to official data from the Embassy of India in Armenia and ArmInfo.

The findings reflect both significant progress in maternal and child health and new challenges for the healthcare system. According to the published data, India demonstrated significant improvement in key health and social indicators compared to the previous round (NFHS-5).

According to the study, in the area of ​​maternal and child health, hospital (institutional) births in the country increased from 88.6% to 90.6%, while in antenatal care, overall antenatal care coverage increased to 95.9%. The proportion of women registered for pregnancy in the first trimester increased from 70% to 76.2%. The proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel reached 91.3%.

Vaccination and child health also feature prominently in the research. Full vaccination coverage among children aged 12–23 months increased from 83.8% to 87.1%, while rotavirus vaccination coverage increased sharply from 36.4% to 85.4%. In the area of ​​malnutrition prevention, the stunting rate among children under 5 decreased from 35.5% to 29.3%. The rate of severe wasting fell from 7.7% to 5.2%.

Women's empowerment plays a prominent role in the research. The proportion of women who have ever used the internet has nearly doubled, from 33.3% to 64.3%. The percentage of women who own and actively use their own bank account has increased to 89% (compared to 78.6%). In terms of safety, the rate of domestic and spousal violence against women has decreased from 29.3% to 22.3%.

Family planning has also become an important area of ​​research. While the total fertility rate (TFR)—the country's fertility rate—has stabilized at 2.0, below the replacement level (2.1), the study notes that despite these positive trends, several critical issues remain: While underweight among children in India is declining, the proportion of overweight and obese adults (especially women) is rapidly increasing. An alarming decline in the rate of exclusive breastfeeding of infants under 6 months has been recorded—from 63.7% to 55.8%. Only 15.3% of children aged 6 to 23 months receive complete and nutritionally adequate nutrition.

The official conclusions of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) of India based on the NFHS-6 study boil down to three key points: steady progress in maternal and child health, strengthening financial protection for the population during treatment, and demographic stabilization.