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Highlights Examines the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in India in four separate time steps. Uses geospatial and geostatistical measure to identify viral hotspots and clusters. Analyses COVID-19′s correlates at the district level, eliciting detailed outputs. Gauges epidemiological susceptibility and socioeconomic vulnerability to COVID-19. Provides a framework for denoting districts where lockdown measures can be eased.

Contraception, the prevention of pregnancy through temporary or permanent means, can act as an effective instrument for achieving population stabilization in any region. This study deals with the socioeconomic and cultural differentials influencing contraceptive use among presently married women aged between 20 and 49 years currently in the state of West Bengal, India, as discerned from National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-3 (2005)(2006) data. To examine the above, simple percentage distribution, cross tabulation, and binary logistic regression analysis have been employed to the available NFHS-3 data for select socioeconomic and cultural variables. The fundamental findings of the current study were that among the various socioeconomic and cultural factors, the most important ones that persuaded contraceptive use and choices among women were their number of living children, wealth index, media exposure, and degree of women empowerment. Results from the logistic regression analysis further reveals that the influence of women's educational level on contraceptive use remains highly significant even after factoring in other socioeconomic and cultural variables.