The
Government has been conducting surveys like, National Family Health Surveys
(NFHS), District Level Household Surveys (DLHS), Annual Health Survey (AHS),
Sample Registration System (SRS) etc., to assess the performance of various
health indicators including those for children.
Performance
of some of the health indicators relating to children is given below.
|
Indicator
|
Value
|
Source
(Year)
|
|
Neonatal
Mortality Rate
|
29
|
SRS
(2012)
|
|
Infant
Mortality Rate
|
40
|
SRS
(2013)
|
|
Under
five Mortality Rate
|
52
|
SRS(2012)
|
|
Fully
Immunized (%) Children aged 12-23 months
|
53.5
|
DLHS
– 3 (2007-08)
|
|
%
of Children aged under 3 years whose mother started breastfeeding within one
hour of birth
|
40.5
|
DLHS
– 3 (2007-08)
|
|
%
of Children Under age 5 years classified as Underweight
|
42.5
|
NFHS
-3 (2005-06)
|
The steps taken by
the Government to further improve the health condition of childreninclude the following:
1.
Focussed attention in 184 High Priority
Districts for implementation of Reproductive Maternal Newborn Child Health+
Adolescent (RMNCH+A) interventions for achieving improved maternal and child
health outcomes.
2. Name
Based Web enabled Tracking of Pregnant Women to ensure antenatal, intranatal
and postnatal care and children for immunization to all the children.
3. Mother
and Child Protection Card in collaboration with the Ministry of Women and Child
Development to monitor service delivery for mothers and children.
4. Engagement
of more than 8.9 lakhs Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) to generate
demand and facilitate accessing of health care services by the community
including those for children.
5. Village
Health and Nutrition Days in rural areas as an outreach activity, for provision
of maternal and child health services.
6. Health
and nutrition education to promote dietary diversification, inclusion of iron
and folate rich food as well as food items that promote iron absorption.
7. Put
in place similar entitlements for all sick infants accessing public health
institutions for treatment.
8. Establishment
of Newborn care corners at all health facilities where deliveries take place;
Setting up of Special New Born Care Units and New Born Stabilization Units at
appropriate facilities for the care of sick newborn including preterm babies.
9. Promotion
of appropriate Infant and young child feeding practices such as early
initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding and age appropriate complementary
feeding among young children.
10. Launched India
Newborn Action Plan to reduce neonatal mortality and stillbirths.
11. Intensified
Diarrhoea Control Fortnight was observed in August 2014 focussing on ORS and
Zinc distribution for management of diarrhoea and feeding
practices.
12. Integrated
Action Plan for Pneumonia and Diarrhoea launched in four States (Uttar Pradesh,
Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan) with highest Child Mortality.
The MoS, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, ShriShripadYessoNaikstated this in a written reply in the LokSabha here today.
*****
MV/BK