Teen pregnancy rates increased in Rajasthan between NFHS-5 and NFHS-6.
Child health indicators, including immunisation, breastfeeding and nutrition, worsened.
Social groups have urged the state government to take corrective action.
According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), Rajasthan has witnessed a sharp increase in teenage pregnancies. A decline in institutional births, vaccination and health of children was also noted. This paints a worrying picture of the children’s healthcare system in the desert state.
As per NFHS-6 data from 2023-2024, adolescent pregnancy rates in the state rose from 3.7% in the last survey, conducted between 2019-2021, to 4.7%.
Modern contraceptive usage has fallen from 62.1% to 57.1% though the overall use of contraceptives saw a slight jump from 72.3% to 74.4%. This jump was mainly fueled by the increase in the use of traditional contraceptives.
Child Health and Nutrition
Institutional births, deliveries that take place in a healthcare facility, registered a small decline from 94.9% to 94.1%. Deliveries in public health facilities fell sharply from 77% to 70.5%.
Exclusive breastfeeding in the state among infants below six months has declined from 70.4% to 54.3%. This is in line with the national trend where the figure dropped from 63.7% to 55.8%.
Among children under five years of age, wasting (low weight for height) has increased from 16.8% to 19.8%, while the proportion of underweight children (low weight for age) has risen from 27.6% to 33.3%.
Full immunisation coverage among children between 12 and 23 months fell from 85.3% to 75.0%.
Concerns Among Social Groups
In repsonse to the worrying healthcare statistics in Rajasthan several social groups and activists have urged the state government to take corrective action as soon as possible.
According to The Indian Express, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA) said in a letter to the state’s health minister Gajendra Singh Khimsar, that the lack of immunisation coverage could increase the risk of preventable outbreaks among children.
On maternal health, JSA said, “These trends raise serious concerns regarding access to and quality of maternal and reproductive health services, as well as the effectiveness of family planning programmes. They underscore the urgent need for measures to ensure equitable access to safe and quality maternal healthcare across the state.”
The other signatories in the letter to the Health Minister include the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), Indian Health Development Society, Basic Health Services (Udaipur), Jeevandhara, Jan Sambal Sansthan, and Jan Adhikar Manch, among others.
