30 out of 1k newborns die in Jharkhand every yr: Study

Ranchi: As many as 30 out of every 1,000 children born in Jharkhand died in 2018, according to the latest sample registration survey (SRS) report.
The infant mortality rate (IMR) in rural areas of the state was higher than in urban pockets. While 26 out of every 1,000 infants born in urban pockets died, 31 of them succumbed in the rural areas. Madhya Pradesh is ranked the worst in terms of IMR with 48 deaths while Kerala has the lowest IMR (seven), the report stated.
Jharkhand’s IMR, however, is lower than the national average of 32. In 2018, the IMR in the state was seven points lower than that of 2013. In 2013, the state’s IMR stood at 37 with 38 deaths per 1,000 live births in rural pockets. However, it is marginally higher than what it was in 2017 (29).
The death ratio is higher among women in both rural and urban pockets of the state. In rural Jharkhand, 26 female infants died in every 1,000 live births while in urban areas, the figure stood at 28, the report stated.
The state’s IMR is lower than several larger states that include Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Rajasthan. But it is higher when compared to Bihar, Punjab, West Bengal, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, among others.
Health department officials in Ranchi said the IMR was lowered owing to better antenatal care, institutional delivery and distribution of iron-folic acid tablets among the state’s pregnant women.