Previous Year Question

Among the monitorable health targets of the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012) was the reduction of India's Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) to 28 per 1000 live births.

Infant Mortality Rate means the number of deaths of infants before completing one year of age per 1000 live births during a specified period. It is an important indicator of maternal-child health, nutrition, sanitation and access to healthcare.

Around the beginning of the Eleventh Plan, the national IMR was about 57-58 per 1000 live births. Therefore, the target of 28 represented a substantial intended reduction.

However, the target was not achieved by the end of the Plan period. The assessment of the monitorable goals recorded the 2011 IMR at 44 per 1000 live births, against the target of 28. Thus, mortality improved, but not sufficiently to reach the target.

Current Status

A current update is useful here. According to the latest available SRS 2024, India's IMR has declined to 24 infant deaths per 1000 live births. Rural IMR is 27, while Urban IMR is 17.

Thus, India has subsequently moved below the 28 level targeted during the Eleventh Plan—although this was achieved after the Eleventh Plan period, not within it.

The trend can be remembered as—

2006 baseline → 57
Eleventh Plan target → 28
2011 status → 44
2024 latest SRS → 24 per 1000 live births