Infant Mortality among Tribes Population in India: Regional Analysis from Multiple Surveys

Abstract

Present paper tries to understand the levels, trends and regional variation of infant mortality rate (IMR) among one of the disadvantaged caste group that is, Scheduled Tribes (STs) of central and eastern Indian region of the country. The analysis was based on National Family Health Surveys: 1993-2006, Sample Registration Survey: 1992-2005, Census of India: 2001-2011 and Rural Health Statistics: 2012 data. Results indicate that the tribes of central and eastern Indian states of Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh had relatively higher levels of infant mortality rate. Trend analysis of IMR among tribal children showed that except Odisha the pace of infant mortality transition were stagnant in other three states and the levels of IMR among tribal families were higher than 80 infant deaths per 1000 live births in all the four states. In all states of the region, only ten percent of deliveries among tribal women took place in an institution and nearly half of the tribal women utilised Antenatal Care (ANC) services. Gap in literacy rate between tribes and general population ranges between nine percent in Jharkhand to twenty-one percent in Odisha.