India sees significant improvements in maternal and infant mortality rates: Centre

New Delhi, March 19
India has made significant improvements in maternal and infant mortality rates, Anupriya Patel, Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, has said.

The Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) of the country has significantly declined by 33 points from 130 in 2014-16 to 97 in 2018-20 per lakh live births, Patel said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

Similarly, "the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) of the country has declined from 39 per 1,000 live births in 2014 to 28 per 1,000 live births in 2020," she added.

The data is based on the Sample Registration System (SRS) released by the Registrar General of India (RGI).

Patel informed that the improvements seen in mother and child health have surpassed the global average witnessed in the last three decades.

"The MMR in India has declined by 83 per cent, compared to the global reduction of 42 per cent," Patel said.

Similarly, the IMR declined by 69 per cent, compared to 55 per cent globally, she added.

The data is based on the United Nations Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group report (UN-MMIEG 1990-2020).

Further, the country also saw a significant drop in the Neonatal Mortality Rate (NMR) as well as the Under-5 Mortality Rate.

"The NMR declined from 26 per 1,000 live births in 2014 to 20 per 1,000 live births in 2020," Patel said.

The under-5 mortality rate declined from 45 per 1,000 live births in 2014 to 32 per 1,000 live births in 2020," she added.

Citing the UN-MMIEG 1990-2020 report, Patel noted that IMR and under-5 mortality rate also surpassed the global numbers.

While the NMR in India reduced by 65 per cent -- compared to 51 per cent globally -- the Under-5 Mortality Rate declined by 75 per cent -- surpassing the global reduction of 58 per cent.

The minister also mentioned the key technological advancements introduced under the National Health Mission for facilitating patient care. This includes the U-WIN (Digital Vaccination Platform); the Tele-MANAS (Mental Health Helpline); and the Mobile Medical Units Monitoring Portal.

Patel said the government is also providing financial support by implementing the Free Drugs Service Initiative (FDSI) and Free Diagnostic Service Initiatives (FDSI) under the National Health Mission (NHM) across all states and UTs.

The initiatives are being undertaken "to ensure the availability of essential drugs, diagnostics and to reduce the Out-of-Pocket Expenditure (OOPE) of the patients visiting the public healthcare facilities including marginalised communities," Patel said.

As a result, the OOPE as a percentage of the Total Health Expenditure (THE) has declined from 64.2 per cent in 2013-14 to 39.4 per cent in 2021-22," the MoS said, citing the National Health Accounts Estimates.