UPSC Essentials: Data on your tips- NFHS 5 on underage marriages and TFR

Essential data, facts and figures from reports and important documents for UPSC-CSE.

Underage marriages are lowest in J&K, Lakshadweep, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Nagaland, Kerala, Puducherry, and Tamil Nadu. (Express File)

Aspirants must have a knowledge of some very essential data and their trends for Prelims, supporting their arguments in GS Mains, and have an impressive reply in their interview. The latest released NFHS-5 data shows some changing trends in underage marriages, use of contraceptives, and TFR.

Relevance: Prelims- Economic and Social Development

Mains- GS I- Society -GS II- issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources

Read | Total fertility rate dips in India; find out what it is and how it is calculated

What does the latest data of the National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) say about underage marriages?

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– The underage marriage both in men and women has seen a decline from NFHS-4. According to NFHS-5, 23.3% of women surveyed got married before attaining the legal age of 18 years, down from 26.8% reported in NFHS-4. The figure for underage marriage among men is 17.7% (NFHS-5) and 20.3% (NFHS-4).

-As per the NFHS-5 national average of underage marriages has come down but some of the states show an increase in the rate.

-Tripura has seen the largest jump in marriages under the legal age of 18 years for women from 33.1% (NFHS-4) to 40.1%, and from 16.2% to 20.4% among men.

-West Bengal, along with Bihar, remains one of the states with the highest rate of underage marriages.

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-It is important to note that in Bihar, while the rate has come down, that reduction is marginal: from 42.5% (NFHS-4) to 40.8% (NFHS-5) for women, and 35.3% to 30.5%, respectively, for men.

-The biggest gains in improving legal marriage have been seen in Chhattisgarh, where underage marriages have come down from 21.3% to 12.1% among women and from 26.9% to 16.2% among men.

– Underage marriages are lowest in J&K, Lakshadweep, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Nagaland, Kerala, Puducherry, and Tamil Nadu.

Also Read | Barring some, underage marriages down in most states: National Family Health Survey

What does the latest data of NFHS-5 have to say about the use of modern contraception?

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-According to the survey, the knowledge of contraceptive methods is almost universal in India — more than 99% of married women and men aged between 15 and 49 know at least one modern method.

-But the use of modern contraceptives for family planning is only 56.4%.

What does the latest data on NFHS-5 tell about the fertility rate?

-Total Fertility Rates, an average number of children per woman, have declined from 2.2 (NFHS-4) to 2.0 at the national level.

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-The Survey says only five states are above the replacement level of fertility of 2.1: Bihar (2.98), Meghalaya (2.91), Uttar Pradesh (2.35), Jharkhand (2.26) Manipur (2.17).

-Institutional births have increased substantially from 79% to 89%.

Manas Srivastava

Manas Srivastava leads the UPSC Essentials section of The Indian Express (digital). He majorly writes on UPSC, other competitive exams and education-related projects. In the past, Manas has represented India at the G-20 Youth Summit in Mexico. He is a former member of the Youth Council, GOI. A two-time topper/gold medallist in History (both in graduation and post-graduation) from Delhi University, he has mentored and taught UPSC aspirants for more than five years. His diverse role in The Indian Express consists of writing, editing, anchoring/ hosting, interviewing experts, and curating and simplifying news for the benefit of students. He hosts the YouTube talk show called ‘Art and Culture with Devdutt Pattanaik’ and a LIVE series on Instagram and YouTube called ‘LIVE with Manas’.His talks on ‘How to read a newspaper’ focus on newspaper reading as an essential habit for students. His articles and videos aim at finding solutions to the general queries of students and hence he believes in being students' editor, preparing them not just for any exam but helping them to become informed citizens. This is where he makes his teaching profession meet journalism. He is also the editor of UPSC Essentials' monthly magazine for the aspirants. He is a recipient of the Dip Chand Memorial Award, the Lala Ram Mohan Prize and Prof. Papiya Ghosh Memorial Prize for academic excellence. He was also awarded the University’s Post-Graduate Scholarship for pursuing M.A. in History where he chose to specialise in Ancient India due to his keen interest in Archaeology. He has also successfully completed a Certificate course on Women’s Studies by the Women’s Studies Development Centre, DU. As a part of N.S.S in the past, Manas has worked with national and international organisations and has shown keen interest and active participation in Social Service. He has led and been a part of projects involving areas such as gender sensitisation, persons with disability, helping slum dwellers, environment, adopting our heritage programme. He has also presented a case study on ‘Psychological stress among students’ at ICSQCC- Sri Lanka. As a compere for seminars and other events he likes to keep his orating hobby alive. His interests also lie in International Relations, Governance, Social issues, Essays and poetry. ... Read More

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