Over 90% of Indian babies born in hospitals, 87% of one-year-olds fully vaccinated: NFHS-6

The sixth round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), conducted across India in 2023–24, was released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare i...

What Happened

The sixth round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), conducted across India in 2023–24, was released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in May 2026, documenting improvements across maternal and child health indicators.
Institutional deliveries rose to 90.6% from 88.6% in NFHS-5, moving India closer to universal coverage of facility-based births.
Full immunization coverage among children aged 12–23 months improved from 83.8% to 87.1%; at least one vaccine was received by over 96% of children in this age group.
Stunting among children under five declined from 35.5% (NFHS-5) to 29.3%, a 17% reduction, while severe wasting fell by 32% compared to the previous round.
Antenatal care coverage reached 95.9% of pregnant women, with those completing at least four ANC visits rising from 58.5% to 65.2%.

Static Topic Bridges

National Family Health Survey (NFHS)

The NFHS is a large-scale, multi-round national survey of population, health, and nutrition indicators conducted under the stewardship of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India. The nodal agency is the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai. The first round (NFHS-1) was conducted in 1992–93; subsequent rounds were conducted in 1998–99 (NFHS-2), 2005–06 (NFHS-3), 2015–16 (NFHS-4), 2019–21 (NFHS-5), and 2023–24 (NFHS-6). The survey collects data on fertility, mortality, family planning, nutrition, and key health service utilisation across all states and union territories, providing the evidentiary base for policy planning under the National Health Mission and other government programmes.

Nodal agency: International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai
Administrative ministry: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW)
Survey frequency: approximately every 4–5 years; NFHS-6 covered 6.79 lakh households across 715 districts
Data used as the primary benchmark for SDG health targets, National Health Policy monitoring, and POSHAN Abhiyaan assessments

Connection to this news: NFHS-6 data directly benchmarks the effectiveness of schemes like LaQshya (facility-based deliveries), Mission Indradhanush (immunisation), and POSHAN Abhiyaan (stunting reduction) that are standard topics in UPSC GS-2.

Mission Indradhanush and Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP)

The Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) was launched in 1985 as part of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation. It provides free vaccines to children against preventable diseases including tuberculosis, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B, and measles. Mission Indradhanush, launched in December 2014 by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, was designed as an intensive catch-up drive to fully immunise children and pregnant women who had not been covered under routine immunisation, targeting districts with low coverage. Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) phases were subsequently launched from 2017 onwards. The programme contributed to the significant improvement in full immunisation rates seen across NFHS rounds.

UIP launch: 1985 (originally Expanded Programme on Immunisation)
Mission Indradhanush launch: December 2014
Current vaccines under UIP: BCG, OPV, DPT, Hepatitis B, MMR, Rotavirus, IPV, Pentavalent, and others
Target under Mission Indradhanush: 90%+ full immunisation coverage
Implementing ministry: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare via National Health Mission

Connection to this news: The improvement in full immunisation from 83.8% to 87.1% in NFHS-6 reflects cumulative outcomes of Mission Indradhanush and its intensified phases; Rotavirus vaccine coverage more than doubled, directly attributable to recent additions to the UIP schedule.

POSHAN Abhiyaan (National Nutrition Mission)

POSHAN Abhiyaan, India's flagship nutrition programme, was launched in March 2018 under the Ministry of Women and Child Development with a goal of reducing stunting, wasting, anaemia, and low birth weight among children under five and pregnant/lactating women. It leverages a technology-driven, community-based convergence approach across Anganwadi centres. The programme sets annual reduction targets: 2% per year for stunting and underweight, and 3% per year for anaemia. It operates under the aegis of the National Nutrition Mission, backed by World Bank assistance.

Launch: March 2018
Nodal ministry: Ministry of Women and Child Development
Target: Reduce stunting by 6% over three years; wasting by 6%
Implementation mechanism: Anganwadi network (ICDS), convergence with health and sanitation departments
Stunting in under-5 children reduced from 38.4% (NFHS-4, 2015-16) → 35.5% (NFHS-5, 2019-21) → 29.3% (NFHS-6, 2023-24)

Connection to this news: The 32% decline in severe wasting and 17% decline in stunting documented in NFHS-6 are primary outcome indicators of POSHAN Abhiyaan and the broader convergence of health and nutrition schemes; this data will be cited in UPSC questions on welfare scheme effectiveness.

Key Facts & Data

Institutional deliveries (hospital births): 90.6% (NFHS-6) vs. 88.6% (NFHS-5)
Full immunisation coverage (12–23 months): 87.1% (up from 83.8%)
Children receiving at least one vaccine: over 96%
Stunting in children under five: 29.3% (down from 35.5% — a 17% reduction)
Severe wasting: declined by 32% compared to NFHS-5
Antenatal care (ANC) coverage: 95.9% of pregnant women
Pregnant women completing at least 4 ANC visits: 65.2% (up from 58.5%)
NFHS-6 sample: 6.79 lakh households across 715 districts
95.6% of vaccinated children received most vaccines from public health facilities