Early Neonatal Mortality in India

There has been a substantial decline in infant and child mortality in the recent decade compared to the Neonatal mortality rate; this has consistently resulted in an increased contribution of neonatal deaths to overall infant mortality over the years. The present study systematically tries to assess the trends and determinants of early neonatal mortality in India using the two rounds of National Family Health Survey data (namely; NFHS-3 and 5). Data analysis was carried out using bivariate, multivariate and decomposition techniques. The prevalence of early neonatal mortality has declined from 3% in 2005 to 2.1% in 2019–2021. Results from regression and decomposition analyses attribute mother’s height, birth order and sex of the child, child weight at birth, caste, religion, wealth quintiles, place of delivery, media exposure, health insurance coverage, and region of the residence as the major contributing factors for the decline in early neonatal mortality. The findings of the study indicate the importance of further improving women’s education, mother’s age at child birth, reducing gender differentials, and improving other socio-economic development indicators to reduce newborn mortality.