Nagaland’s total fertility rate has increased from 1.7 in NFHS-5 (2019-21) to 2.0 in NFHS-6 (2023-24), according to key indicators released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) on Friday.
The latest data also revealed a sharp rural-urban divide in fertility trends, with rural Nagaland recording a fertility rate of 2.4 children per woman compared to 1.4 in urban areas.
The National Family Health Survey-6 (NFHS-6), conducted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare with the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, as the nodal agency, covered nearly 6.79 lakh households across 715 districts in the country and provides key data on population, health, nutrition and family welfare indicators.
While the survey indicated improvements in several maternal and institutional healthcare indicators, it also recorded an increase in early marriages among both women and men in the state.
According to the survey, the percentage of women aged 20-24 years who were married before the age of 18 increased from 5.6 per cent in NFHS-5 to 10.2 per cent in NFHS-6. The figure stood at 9.3 per cent in urban areas and 10.8 per cent in rural areas.
Similarly, the percentage of men aged 25-29 years who were married before the age of 21 increased from 5.0 per cent in NFHS-5 to 10.2 per cent in NFHS-6. The figure was recorded at 13.8 per cent in urban areas and 8.2 per cent in rural areas.
At the same time, the survey showed a slight decline in teenage pregnancies and motherhood. The percentage of women aged 15-19 years who were already mothers or pregnant at the time of the survey declined from 3.8 per cent in NFHS-5 to 3.2 per cent in NFHS-6. The figure stood at 1.8 per cent in urban areas and 4.2 per cent in rural areas.
The survey also highlighted improvements in maternal healthcare services in Nagaland.
Mothers who received antenatal check-ups during the first trimester increased from 49.5 per cent in NFHS-5 to 61.8 per cent in NFHS-6. Mothers who received any antenatal care visits also increased from 71.2 per cent to 83.2 per cent.
Institutional births in the state rose from 45.7 per cent in NFHS-5 to 62.2 per cent in NFHS-6, while institutional births in public health facilities increased from 35.8 per cent to 44.7 per cent.
The percentage of births delivered through caesarean section also increased from 5.2 per cent in NFHS-5 to 9.9 per cent in NFHS-6.
According to the survey, caesarean deliveries in private health facilities rose from 23.6 per cent to 32.5 per cent, while caesarean deliveries in public health institutions increased from 8.0 per cent to 9.4 per cent.
The NFHS remains one of India’s largest nationwide household surveys and is considered a key source for policymaking and public health planning.
