Age of marriage is increasing, but challenges remain!!!

Now girls are getting married at an older age than before. The average marriage age of girls in the year 2017 was 22.1 years, which increased to 22.7 years in 2020. In villages, this age has increased from 21.7 to 22.2 years, while in cities it has increased from 23.1 to 23.9 years. But there are still some challenges. Less educated women are becoming mothers at a much younger age. In the year 2020, the number of educated women who gave birth to children between the ages of 15 and 19 was very low. Whereas among educated and degree holders, this number was almost zero. This shows that it is very important to educate women.

Decrease in total fertility rate (TFR)

Total fertility rate (TFR) shows how many children a woman gives birth to on average. In 2016, this rate was 2.3, which has come down to 2.0 in 2020. In villages, this rate has come down from 2.5 to 2.2, while in cities it has come down from 1.8 to 1.6. Educated women give birth to fewer children than less educated women. For example, women who have not completed their studies have 3.1 children while educated women have 1.9 children. Degree-holding women have an average of only 1.6 children.

Reduction in infant mortality rate

Infant mortality rate means how many children die before one year for every 1000 children born. This number is directly related to how many children are born. If the infant mortality rate is low, fewer children will be born. Infant mortality rate of both boys and girls has come down in the last few years. Earlier the mortality rate of girls was higher, but now in 2020 both have become equal. Out of every 1000 children, 28 are dying before the age of one year. kerala has the lowest infant mortality rate in the country, where only 6 out of every 1000 children die. At the same time, madhya pradesh has the highest infant mortality rate, where this number is 43.