2023 saw 66% firstborns, birth gap improved, shows SRS data

NEW DELHI: Nearly 66% of live births in 2023 were first-order births - a terminology used to refer to the first born - and just 3.6% accounted for fourth or higher order births, according to the Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report 2023. In terms of spacing of births, it stated, 53.6% of second and higher order births occurred 36 months or more after the previous live birth.

Just 1.8% of second and higher-order live births occurred within 10-12 months of the previous live birth.

The birth order - related to the chronological sequence of a child's birth within a family, such as first-born, middle child or youngest - and birth interval are seen as a critical information on spacing of children and level of fertility. They are are also important factors for the wellbeing of a mother and her child's development.

In 2022 in India, 64% of current live births were first-order births, 23% second-order births, 8.3% third-order births and 4.7% fourth or higher-order births.

The data for 2023 showed that 66% of current live births were first-order births, 22.9% second-order births, 7.5% third-order births and 3.6% fourth or higher-order births. Among the bigger states and UTs, Telangana had the highest percentage (82.4) of first-order births, while Kerala the lowest at 47.5%.

Kerala had the highest percentage of second and third order births at 34.9% and 13.3%, respectively. Telangana had the lowest second and third order births at 13.8% and 3.2%, respectively. Madhya Pradesh has the highest percentage of fourth or higher-order births at 6.7%, while Andhra Pradesh has the lowest at 0.4%.

Data on birth intervals showed 1.8% of second & higher-order live-births occurred within 10-12 months of the previous live birth in India, 19.3% within 12-24 months, 25.3% within 24-36 months, & 53.6% occurred 36 months or more after the previous live birth.

At the state level, the percentage of second and higher-order live-births occurred within 10-12 months of the previous live birth and ranged from nil in J&K to 3.3% in Andhra Pradesh. The percentage of second and higher-order live-births that occurred after 36 months or more after the previous live birth ranged from 37.3% in Andhra Pradesh to 82.9% in West Bengal.

In the past too research drawing from govt data like the National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-21) has drawn attention to the urgent need for spacing methods in family planning to improve health outcomes and highlighted that inter-pregnancy intervals (IPI) shorter than 12 months are a risk factor for diarrhoea and acute respiratory infections. Also, IPIs shorter than 12 months and 12-17 months have been cited as risk factor for stunting and underweight among under-5 children in India.


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