SBI sees material health gains in NHFS-6, urges broader spending on mother and children
New Delhi, June 17
India's latest NFHS-6 survey has flagged a mixed but broadly encouraging public health picture, showing material progress in key health indicators over the past three years, even as it underlines the need for greater spending on holistic healthcare for children and mothers, noted a report by SBI.
The SBI Research report noted that India has moved faster in the latest survey cycle than in the earlier decade-long gaps between NFHS rounds, allowing a clearer view of gains in maternal health, vaccination, and fertility transition. "The gap has been reduced to a fixed 3-year interval under the current Government to have a better tracking of indicators," the report said.
On child health, the biggest achievement has been in stunting. "The area where India made remarkable progress is the share of stunted children," SBI Research said, adding that the proportion of stunted children under five fell to 29.3% in 2023-24 from 35.5% in 2019-21. The report also pointed to a sharper vaccination gain, with 82.6% of children aged 12-23 months now fully vaccinated, up from 76.6% in NFHS-5.
However, the report said the improvement in underweight and wasting has been modest, suggesting that nutrition outcomes cannot be addressed through narrow interventions alone. It argued for a "holistic approach" involving public-private-community partnerships and stronger support systems to improve awareness, supervision and delivery. The study also observed that states with higher medical and health expenditure tended to see larger reductions in underweight and stunting, even though the estimated coefficients were not statistically significant.
Among women, the survey shows a strong rise in access to maternal healthcare. Institutional births are now near universal at 90.6%, while the share of mothers with four or more antenatal care visits has climbed to 65.2%. At the same time, the report highlighted a worrying rise in obesity among women, which increased to 30.7% in 2023-24 from 24.0% in NFHS-5.
Fertility trends suggest India's demographic transition is largely mature, with the total fertility rate steady at 2.0, while contraceptive prevalence has improved to 69.1%. Women's financial inclusion has also strengthened sharply, with 89.0% now using their own bank or savings account, up from 78.6% in NFHS-5.
The report said that India's health gains are real, but future progress will depend on spending more on integrated care for children and mothers, especially as the country faces the dual challenge of persistent undernutrition and rising non-communicable disease risk.
— ANI
Reader Comments
The 82.6% full vaccination coverage is great news--especially after the covid disruptions. But "modest improvement in underweight and wasting" tells me we need more than just medical interventions. Our mid-day meal schemes need better calorie and protein content. Also, why is the SBI report talking about health? Let the Health Ministry do its job. Feels like banks are meddling. 🤷♂️
Finally some data-driven reporting! The near-universal institutional births (90.6%) is a massive achievement for a country our size. But four or more ANC visits at only 65.2% shows we still have work to do in rural outreach. The holistic approach with public-private-community partnerships makes sense--but implementation is key. I hope this report pushes the government to increase health spending beyond the current 1.5% of GDP. We need at least 2.5% to sustain these gains.
Interesting read as someone who works in global health. India's transition to 3-year NFHS cycles is a best practice other countries should follow. The stunting reduction is commendable--but the wasting and underweight numbers need focused attention. Also, the 89% women having bank accounts is impressive financial inclusion. However, the report's conclusion about spending more on integrated care is obvious. Where's the specific roadmap? 😕
As a mother of two, I'm happy to see institutional births at 90.6% but hesitant to celebrate fully. Quality of care in many government hospitals is still poor--long queues, rude staff, lack of privacy. Also, the focus on "mother and child" ignores the father's role in family health. My husband learned to cook healthy meals for us after we had kids. Maybe we need to involve men more in nutrition education? Just a thought.
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