The Hindu Editorial Analysis- 3rd July 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

Why in News?

The significance of data in influencing policy constructs and thereon, decisions, is non-contestable. The country takes periodic stock of various parameters just to inform welfare policies better. In context, the recent decision of the Union government to drop the disability-specific question from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-6 seems churlish and sends out wrong signals.

The National Family Health Survey (NFHS):

• About: It is a large-scale, multi-round survey conducted in a representative sample of households throughout India.
• Objective: To collect reliable and up-to-date information on fertility, family planning, mortality and maternal & child health.
• Conducted by:
• All surveys have been conducted under the stewardship of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India.
• MoHFW designated the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, as the nodal agency for the surveys.
• Funding: NFHS was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) with supplementary support from United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

 Number of Surveys Conducted:

• The First Survey (NFHS-1): Conducted in 1992-93, the survey collected extensive information on population, health and nutrition, with an emphasis on women and young children.
• The Second Survey (NFHS-2): Conducted in 1998-99 in all the states of India with added features on the quality of health and family planning services, domestic violence, reproductive health, anaemia, the nutrition of women and the status of women.
• The Third Survey (NFHS-3): Carried out in 2005-2006, with the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) and the National AIDS Research Institute (NARI) providing technical assistance for the HIV component.
• The Fourth Survey (NFHS-4): Carried out in 2014-2015, NFHS-4 is the first of the NFHS series that collects data in each of India’s States and UTs.
• The 2019-2021 Fifth Survey (NFHS-5): NFHS-5 findings were eventually revealed in December 2020 (Phase-1), based on which MoHFW established a technical expert panel to develop indicators for malnutrition, stunting, anaemia and C-section.
• The 2023-24 NFHS-6: The sixth in the NFHS series, provides information on population, health, and nutrition for India and each state and UT. Like NFHS-4 and NFHS-5, NFHS-6 also provides district-level estimates for many important indicators.

 News Summary Regarding Disability Data:

• The questions on disability were included for the first time in the NFHS-5. Based on the NFHS-5 report, it was observed that disability prevalence was only 1% for rural areas and 0.9% for urban areas.
• However, National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) estimates for the year 2018 showed 2.3% for rural areas and 2% for urban areas.
• Questionnaires in the NFHS-6 are based on recommendations by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and other higher-level committees constituted for smooth functioning of the Survey.
• However, TAC recommended that proposed questions related to disability estimates need not be included in NFHS-6, as NSSO data is still relevant in this domain.
• Also, types of disability had several medical terminologies, which may result in inappropriate responses as the respondents might not be aware of the specific disabilities.
• Disability rights activists said that people with disabilities in India experience an average loss of 10-17 years in life expectancy and closing this gap for the world’s largest minority group requires access to comprehensive health data.
• With the NFHS- 6 survey scheduled to commence in just a month’s time, it is imperative to act swiftly and prioritise the inclusion of the disability question.
• The government’s response stating that data does not change over three years demonstrates a lack of sensitivity.