New Delhi: Delhi saw a decline in the birth rate after the COVID-19 pandemic as it dropped from 18.35 per 1000 population to 14.85 in 2020, according to the latest government report. The 'Annual Report on Registration of Births and Deaths in Delhi-2023' also said that out of 13,919 non-institutional births, 7,216 (51.84 per cent) were girls.
Of the 301,168 institutional births, 194,428 (64.56 percent) took place in public hospitals. Of that total, 143,891 (47.78 percent) were girls, according to the report.
The report notes that one of the important indicators emerging from the Civil Registry System is the birth rate, which, during the period between 2005 and 2019, ranged between 18 and 22 per 1,000 inhabitants.
However, after COVID-19, the birth rate is expected to range between 13 and 15 per 1,000 inhabitants between 2020 and 2023. However, the report does not cite the reason for the decline in numbers.
In 2019, the birth rate stood at 18.35 per 1,000 inhabitants, while it decreased to 14.85 in 2020, 13.13 in 2021 and then to 14.24 and 14.66 in 2022 and 2023 respectively.
During 2023, the proportion of institutional births to total registered births increased (1.56 percent) compared to 2022. In 2023, a total of 3,01,168 live births occurred in hospitals, which means that on average, 825 live births occurred daily in hospitals during 2023.
Of the total births, 95.58 per cent were institutional births, including 61.71 per cent births in government institutions and 33.88 per cent in non-government institutions, while 4.42 per cent were non-institutional or home births. During 2023, government hospitals in Delhi have attended an average of 533 live birth cases per day (512 per day in 2022), as against 292 per day (262 per day in 2022) in non-government institutions.
Of the total births, 86.06 per cent were registered in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), while the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) accounted for 12.86 per cent.
The total registration in the Delhi Cantonment Board accounts for only 1.08 per cent of the total births. The breakdown of registered births reveals that only 13.79 per cent of the births were rural, while 86.21 per cent were urban.
The report also highlighted the fact that hospitals and institutions do not regularly report data on stillbirths to the relevant registrar.
The Office of the Chief Registrar (B&D) had sent a communication to sensitize the medical superintendents of hospitals/institutions to report vital events including stillbirths within the stipulated period of 21 days to the concerned Registrar (B&D), it said.
The report notes that last year there was a 67:33 ratio between institutional and home-based death events recorded. The proportion of non-institutional events decreased from 36.28 percent in 2022 to 33.06 percent in 2023.
Of the total 1,32,391 deaths recorded during the year 2023, infant deaths accounted for 7,439, according to the report.