Every year, over 1.3 million infants and 50,000 moms pass away in the nation during or right after birth. The national health ministry reports that India’s neonatal death rate is now 29 per 1,000 live births. According to the government, India wants to reduce it to single digits within the next 15 years.
India is responsible for 700,000 of the 2.8 million babies that die at birth globally, according to officials. Gagan Gupta, a health specialist with UNICEF India, told CNN that the nation’s under-5 death rate is even more alarming at 49 per 1,000 live births.
CAUSES
There are a number of reasons why infant mortality is high in India even today. These issues are interlinked and contribute to child deaths.
In addition to newborn health issues, widespread illiteracy, poverty, subpar sanitation, and inadequate nutrition have all been linked to high rates of infant mortality in the second-most populated country in the world.
According to Gupta, despite a substantial decline in its under-5 mortality between 1990 and 2013, India continues to have the highest rate of newborn and child fatalities worldwide, followed by Nigeria, Pakistan, China, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
LACK OF ATTENTION TO HEALTHCARE NEEDS
Only 1.5% of India’s GDP was allocated on healthcare in 2019. According to UNICEF, by providing professional medical care at delivery and high-quality postnatal care for the mother and baby, 50% of all deaths in children under the age of five can be avoided.
Half of all fatalities in children under five are attributed to undernutrition. In India, anaemia affects 53% of women. Neonatal fatalities can be decreased by an average of 24% with good governance and well educated medical personnel working collaboratively.
The high numbers are caused by a lack of resources at primary health clinics, including physicians, beds, clean water, restrooms, and even transportation to metropolitan hospitals where newborns may receive specialist treatment.