India's infant mortality rate at record low of 25

Infant mortality rate (IMR) in the country has touched a record low of 25, a sharp fall of 37.5 per cent from 40 in 2013, according to the Sample Registration System report for 2023 issued by the Registrar General of India.

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

IMR is a key public health indicator defined as the number of deaths of children per 1,000 live births under one year — the lower the number the better the health accessibility.

According to the SRS 2023 report, which took into account the data for 2023, IMR has registered a dramatic 80 per cent decline from 129 in 1971. It shows that Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Uttar Pradesh reported the highest levels of IMR in the country at 37. The lowest was Manipur at 3.

Kerala was the only one of the 21 large states which reported a single-digit IMR of 5. It is second in the country after Manipur.