National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) 2019-21: Mizoram

The report notes that almost 51 per cent of households in Mizoram lived in a pucca house and 98 per cent had access to electricity. Around 23 per cent of the households surveyed in the state were headed by women, the report adds.

As high as 95 per cent of households in the state had basic sanitation services. Basic drinking water services were available to 95.2 per cent of all surveyed households but only 65.4 per cent had water piped into their dwelling, yard or plot.

About 33 per cent of children in Mizoram (aged 2-4 years) attended preschool. The numbers were slightly higher among boys (36.1 per cent) than among girls (30.2 per cent).

Among children between the ages of 6-14 years, school attendance was recorded as high as 97.1 per cent. It dropped to 78.5 per cent among students aged 15-17 years – 83.1 per cent in urban areas and 72.4 per cent in rural areas.

Since NFHS-4, the total fertility rate in Mizoram decreased from 2.26 children per woman to 1.87 children per woman in NFHS-5.

Among currently married women (aged 15-49 years) the contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) dropped to 31 per cent from 35 per cent between NFHS-4 and NFHS-5. As high as 69 per cent of women in this demographic did not use any contraceptive method, the report states.

The infant mortality rate in Mizoram reduced to 21 deaths (before the age of one year) per 1,000 live births, from the estimate of 40 deaths per 1,000 live births in NFHS-4. During the same period, the under-five mortality rate also fell from 45.9 deaths (before the age of five years) per 1,000 live births to 24 deaths.

Around 87 per cent of the mothers who gave birth in the five years preceding the survey received antenatal care for their last pregnancy from a health professional, the report notes.

Institutional births in the state increased to 86 per cent in NFHS-5 compared to 80 per cent in NFHS-4. Most of these – 73.8 per cent – took place in government facilities. Approximately 14.2 per cent of deliveries happened at home.

Among children aged 12-23 months, about 72.5 per cent of children had received all basic vaccinations against major diseases like tuberculosis, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio and measles, an increase from the NFHS-4 estimate of 50.5 per cent. However, as many as 13.6 per cent of children in this age group had not received any vaccinations.

Of the children under the age of five years, 29 per cent were stunted (too short for their age) and 10 per cent were wasted (too thin for their height). Prevalence of anaemia among children aged 6-59 months rose steeply from 19 per cent in NFHS-4 to 46 per cent in NFHS-5.

Among people in Mizoram (aged 15-49 years), anaemia was recorded in 34.8 per cent of women and 16 per cent of men. These estimates marked an increase from the NFHS-4 numbers of 24.8 per cent and 12.1 per cent among women and men respectively.

In Mizoram, 97.6 per cent of women and 98.8 per cent of men had heard of HIV/AIDS. However, only 64.1 per cent women and 65.6 per cent men had ‘comprehensive knowledge’ about it.

In the 12 months preceding the survey, only 35.2 per cent of women were employed in contrast to 81.6 per cent of men (aged 15-49 years). Additionally, it was found that 80.7 per cent of women had a bank or savings account that they themselves used.

Of women between the ages of 18-49 years in Mizoram, nine per cent reported having experienced either physical or sexual violence and one per cent reported experiencing both. For women who had ever been married, the most common perpetrator was their husband.

Focus and Factoids by Shruti Chakraborty.

PARI Library’s health archive project is part of an initiative supported by the Azim Premji University to develop a free-access repository of health-related reports relevant to rural India.