The Union Health Ministry released the report of National Family Health Survey-6 (NFHS-6) on Friday. In this survey conducted in 2023-24, about 6.79 lakh families from 715 districts of the country were included.
The report has recorded improvement in many important indicators related to maternal and child health, nutrition, vaccination and women’s empowerment. However, increasing cases of lifestyle diseases like obesity and sugar remain a cause for concern.
Hospital delivery and vaccination increased
According to the report, institutional deliveries in the country have increased to 90.6%. This means that now more women are giving birth to children in hospitals or health centers. At the same time, the full vaccination coverage of children has increased to 87.1%. The survey has shown improvement in the nutritional level of children. Stunting has reduced to 29.3% in children under five years of age. Severe wasting also reduced to 5.2%. A slight decline has also been recorded in the figures of underweight children.
more care to pregnant women
The percentage of pregnant women receiving antenatal care has increased to 95.9%. The number of women getting tested in the first trimester has also increased. The percentage of newborn screening within two days of birth has reached 85.3%. Improvement was also recorded in the number of women taking iron and folic acid tablets.
Access to family planning services increased
The country’s total fertility rate remains stable at 2.0. Contraceptive use rate has increased to 69.1%. According to the report, access to family planning services has become better than before.
The scope of health insurance increased rapidly
The report states that coverage of health insurance or health financing schemes has increased from 41% to 60.2%. The government says that schemes like Ayushman Bharat have provided treatment facilities to the poor and weaker sections.
Women’s digital and economic access strengthened
The number of women using the Internet has almost doubled to 64.3%. The percentage of women having self-using bank accounts has increased to 89%. The number of women using mobile phones has also increased. The number of women using their own mobile phones has increased from 53.9 to 63.6 percent.
Increase in obesity, sugar and high BP is a matter of concern
The report also revealed that due to changing lifestyle, cases of obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure have increased. Experts are considering this as a big health challenge in the coming times.