5 states in India yet to reach ‘replacement rate’ fertility: NFHS-5

NEW DELHI: The National Family Health Survey – 5 (NFHS-5) showed that there are five states in India, namely Bihar, Meghalaya, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Manipur, which are yet to achieve the population replacement rate.

This fifth round of the National Family Health Survey was conducted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, in 2018-2019. The NFHS-5 covers 67 indicators to collect information regarding fertility, family planning, nutrition, anaemia, maternal and child health, reproductive health, and infant and child mortality.

According to the data published in NFHS-5, five states of India are yet to achieve the replacement rate fertility or Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of 2.1. These states are Bihar (2.98), Meghalaya (2.91), Uttar Pradesh (2.35), Jharkhand (2.26) and Manipur (2.17).

The average TFR of the country has come down to 2 in NFHS-5 (2018-19), from 2.2 during NFHS-4 (2015-16), while in the first NFHS (1992-93), the TFR of India was 3.7. In 1992-93, the TFR among women of the rural region was 3.7 and in urban region, it was 2.7, which came down to 2.7 and 1.6 respectively in 2018-19.

Additionally, the survey reports that the TFR among women who have received at least 12 years of school education stands at 1.8, while among those without the school education, TFR is at 2.8.

The neo-natal mortality rate came down to 25 per 1000 live births in 2018-19, from 49 per 1000 live births in 1992-93. Similarly, infant mortality also reduced to 35 per 1000 live births in 2018-19, from 79 in the survey of 1992-93. The child mortality rate or under-five mortality has decreased to 42 deaths per 1000 live births from 109 deaths per 1000 live births.