Morbidity in India: trends, patterns and differentials

Soumitra Ghosh, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)
Perianayagam Arokiasamy, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)

India has made significant progress in improving the health conditions of its population in terms of reducing infant mortality rate and increasing life expectancy at birth but what has happened to morbidity is yet to be assessed. This paper presents evidence on levels, differentials and patterns of morbidity prevalence in India and for selected states. Contrary to the gains made through mortality transition in terms of longer life, the part of the expected life appears incapacitated due to the rising morbidity prevalence. The reported morbidity prevalence is significantly higher in the socio-economically developed states than in the less developed ones. While children are at higher risk of suffering from acute diseases, older persons seemed to be more vulnerable due to the rise in the prevalence of chronic diseases. The multivariate analyses suggest that the probability of reporting illness is significantly higher among educated, females and those who are from richer households.