Full transcript:
Sir, the gravity of child mortality in India varies significantly among the States. While West Bengal has succeeded in meeting the national targets, many States have a high infant mortality rate. We are missing the targets of Millennium Development Goals (MDG) – 4 and child survival goals under the 11th and the 12th Five Year Plans, falling short of the target of 27 per 1,000 live births by a considerable 15 percentage points, with the present level of 42 per 1,000 live births.
Neo-natal mortality is one of the major contributors to infant mortality, amounting to 68.5 per cent of the National Infant Mortality rate. Social determinants are as important as the direct cause of such deaths. In India, malnutrition, poverty, mother’s health, medical care, immunization. Health conditions are major causes of persisting significant rates of under-five mortality and infant mortality.
As regards the number of children dying due to pneumonia and diarrhoea, which occurs in 15 countries of the world, India has the highest number of such cases. About 40 per cent hospitalization of below-five years of children is due to rotavirus. India is expected to cover about 89 per cent children for immunization against measles by 2015 and, thus, likely to fall short of universal immunization by about 11 percent.
West Bengal has already achieved the national level MDG target of under-five mortality rate with 38 per 1,000 live births. The Government has not taken any serious measures for curtailing such an alarming situation. The need of the hour is to create a stage-wise action plan that includes nutrition, sanitation and vaccination to reduce these high figures of children’s mortality.