New Delhi: India tops the list of babies that die on the day they are born, says a recent report.
Of every 100 new-borns that die in the world everyday, 29 are from India, which means that there are 300,000 babies from the country who die every year.
The report prepared by the NGO Save the Children compared first-day deaths in 186 countries for its "State of World's Mother Report".
It said that infants fare better even in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
“Luxembourg has the least new-born deaths and India the most,” the reports said.
While infant deaths in India have come down by almost half compared to 1990, the rate has been slower than that in, say, Nepal.
The statistics only get worse.
More than half the child deaths in India happen in the first month.
India has the biggest disparity between the rich and poor in child deaths.
The country's report card on mother and child health too is abysmal. India is behind Pakistan and Bangladesh on this list.
Stunting amongst mothers in South Asia is one of the major factors contributing to newborn baby deaths in the region, according to the report.
Mothers, who suffer from stunting, run a higher risk of complications during birth - both for themselves and their babies.
According to Government of India's Sample Registration Survey 2011, Madhya Pradesh has the highest burden of early newborn deaths (0-7 days) at 32, followed closely by Uttar Pradesh and Odisha at 30.
Other states with high infant death rate are Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir.
Kerala is the leader in reducing neonatal mortality by a wide margin, while Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Maharashtra too have bucked the national rate.
source: ucan