The number of babies born in India is 60 thousand per day. Every sixth newborn baby in the world is an Indian. But due to lack of access to sanitation, proper nutrition, and primary health services, Sixty newborn babies die every hour. The Reasons for the deaths of the child may include neonatal health conditions, illiteracy, premature and low birth rate. Also, the demise of a newborn child is high when the age of the mother is very young(<19 Years) or relatively old(>35Years).
Pneumonia and diarrhoeal diseases, Birth asphyxia & birth trauma Infections are also causes of the death of the newborn child. Northern States Of India( ex.Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan) has more newborn child death than average national newborn child death. Sometimes, newborn girls don't get proper care due to the preference of the male child in the family. Generally, the preference for a male child is seen in the northern state of India. Various state governments provide free service in special newborn care units(SNCU), yet this preference is the main cause of less than half admission of a girl child than a male into these SNCUs.
The Government of India has taken many schemes and laws to reduce girl child preference among families. 'Beti Bachao Beti Padhao'(BBBP) Scheme is one of its kind of scheme. In this Scheme, Government ensures the prevention of gender-based sex-selective elimination of a newborn child and protection of a girl child.
Remote areas of India account for more death of a newborn child than urban due to lack of awareness and primary health services and sometimes weak financial conditions of a family. National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) has significantly reduced newborn child death by providing basic facilities like delivery in hospitals with the help of skilled health workers and Doctors rather than in-home which also reduced many unskilled delivery fatalities. Under the banner of NRHM, Janani Suraksha Yojna (JSY) is an initiative to reduce neonatal mortality by supporting poor pregnant women at the time of birth by encouraging institutional delivery and after the birth by compensating with money.
Child Death in India has significantly reduced over the period by the initiative taken by the Indian Government and the state governments. The Governments are taking various steps to tackle child mortality by encouraging institutional delivery, rapid scale-up of SNCUs, and awareness among families to reduce newborn girl child mortality.
Written By
Pranjul Chaurasiya