The study analyzes the spatial clustering and risk factors of infant mortality across high-focus states of India, using the Annual Health Survey (2010-2011), Census of India (2011), and District Level Household and Facility Survey-3 (2007-2008. Research has found substantial spatial autocorrelation across the districts and identified the "hot spots" characterized by higher infant mortality rate (IMR) in the districts of the central region (Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh) of India. This study has considered several theoretical perspectives and implements a series of spatial regression models that allows accounting for household amenities and mother/child and health facility variables to determine the key risk factors of infant mortality. Our empirical analysis underscores the importance of the infrastructure of the health facility in improving the infant mortality scenario of the districts. The regression results show that the districts with a higher proportion of 24-h functioning primary healthcare centers have overall less infant mortality. In addition, the absence of drinking water from a treated source, unavailability of toilet facilities, and higher proportion of people in the bottom wealth quintile in the household were adversely associated with the IMR. In conclusion, reduction of infant mortality would be possible only if area-specific measures would be adopted on those clusters of districts where infant mortality is high irrespective of the state they belong to.

BackgroundLarge scale surveys are the main source of data pertaining to all the social and demographic indicators, hence its quality is also of great concern. In this paper, we discuss the indicators used to examine the quality of data. We focus on age misreporting, incompleteness and inconsistency of information; and skipping of questions on reproductive and sexual health related issues. In order to observe the practical consequences of errors in a survey; the District Level Household and Facility Survey (DLHS-3) is used as an example dataset.MethodsWhipple's and Myer's indices are used to identify age misreporting. Age displacements are identified by estimating downward and upward transfers for women from bordering age groups of the eligible age range. Skipping pattern is examined by recording the responses to the questions which precede the sections on birth history, immunization, and reproductive and sexual health.ResultsThe study observed errors in age reporting, in all the states, but the extent of misreporting differs by state and individual characteristics. Illiteracy, rural residence and poor economic condition are the major factors that lead to age misreporting. Female were excluded from the eligible age group, to reduce the duration of interview. The study further observed that respondents tend to skip questions on HIV/RTI and other questions which follow a set of questions.ConclusionThe study concludes that age misreporting, inconsistency and incomplete response are three sources of error that need to be considered carefully before drawing conclusions from any survey. DLHS-3 also suffers from age misreporting, particularly for female in the reproductive ages. In view of the coverage of the survey, it may not be possible to control age misreporting completely, but some extra effort to probe a better answer may help in improving the quality of data in the survey.

This study examined the multidimensional nature of the association of stunting, wasting, and underweight for children below 5 years of age in India using data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-3 (2005-2006). Multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) was applied to examine the association of the indicators. Additionally, log-linear model was used to find out the model of best fit to examine the nutritional status of children. It was found that underweight is associated with both stunting and wasting, whereas there was no consistent pattern of association between stunting and wasting. The results also confirmed that children suffered from multiple anthropometric failures. The results showed that height-for-age, weight-for-height, and weight-for-age taken together give the model of best fit for analysis of nutritional status. The study concluded that the three indicators of nutritional status should be considered simultaneously to determine the percentage of undernourished children.

Education is a crucial factor in influencing the pattern and timing of marriage for women, and the changes in levels of female literacy will also change the dynamics of family formation. India has experienced consistent improvement in levels of female literacy; therefore, this study examined the association of women's education with the changes in their demographic behaviour in the Indian context. The central idea of the paper is to examine the differences in age at marriage and first birth, choice of marriage partner and the number of children ever born based on educational attainment of women. In addition, the study examined incongruence in years of schooling and discontinuation from school, for children based on education of the mother. The study utilized data from the third round of District Level Household and Facility Survey. The sample constituted 344,164 ever-married women aged 35 years and above with surviving children aged 5-20 years. The results imply that women with higher education are more likely to marry late and have fewer children compared with less educated women. Accordingly, increase in education of women also increases the probability of marrying men with better education than themselves. The study further observed that education of wife has a greater association with the number of children ever born than the education of husband. At the same time, incongruence in years of schooling and drop-out from school are both high for children of uneducated women. The study also found that the children from urban areas are more likely to drop out than their rural counterparts. In addition to education of the mother, number and composition of children in the family and economic condition of the household are some other factors that influence the educational attainment of children.

Vaccine equity is a growing concern of COVID-19 vaccination roll-outs and uptake globally. Gender has a role in vaccine uptake 1 but goes largely unrecognised in vaccine policies and programmes, undermining attempts to ensure equity. There is a wider gender blind spot that pervades national health responses to COVID-19 beyond vaccination, ranging from the way countries collect and report data to the commitments they make in pandemic health policies.Socially constructed gender norms can mean that women's access to COVID-19 prevention, testing, and treatment, including vaccination, is hindered by unaffordable fees or inability to travel to services. 2 In immunisation programmes before COVID-19, factors such as low autonomy, labour responsibilities, and unpaid care burdens were reasons for gendered barriers to vaccination that disadvantaged women. 3 COVID-19 vaccine uptake may be impacted by poorer access to health services and information about vaccines or perceptions of lower risk, among other factors. 4 Sex is thought to account for greater efficacy of some vaccines in women compared with men due to the different regulation of immune responses related to factors that include hormonal and chromosomal differences. 5 According to the Global Health 50/50 (GH5050) COVID-19 Sex-Disaggregated Data Tracker, among countries reporting COVID-19 vaccine uptake data, women comprise 53% of individuals receiving at least one dose. 6 However, only 34 of the roughly 180 countries that have begun vaccination programmes reported sexdisaggregated data on vaccine coverage between mid-April and mid-May, 2021. 6 Poor recognition by governments of the importance of considering sex and gender is also evident in national policies designed to guide vaccine roll-out. The GH5050 Sex, Gender and COVID-19 Health Policy Portal shows only five (9%) of 58 vaccine policies available as of March, 2021, mentioned gender. England, India, and Lebanon were the only countries found to include gender in their COVID-19 vaccine policies and to publicly report on vaccine uptake by sex. 6,7 However, the inclusion of gender is just a starting point. In-depth analysis of the UK Government's COVID-19 Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) meetings