Survey finds further slide in Delhi sex ratio

If sex ratio is an important human development indicator, the National Capital is on a downward spiral.

According to a new report released by the Delhi government, the sex ratio in the city has taken a further hit since the last 2011 Census, when it stood at 868, and now it is at 758 females per 1,000 males.

The Social Consumption on Health in Delhi, released by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Thursday, is based on the 71st round of National Sample Survey on Health and Morbidity conducted during January-June 2014.

If the figures are compared with the last Census, Delhi may well be sitting right at the bottom of the list. In the 2011 census, Daman and Diu had the worst sex ratio of 618, while the penultimate place was occupied by Dadra and Nagar Haveli with 774.

The rate of morbidity (or the proportion of people reporting ailments per lakh of population) is also much higher among women at 6,149 than for men at 4,146 – indicating poorer state of health and access to care for women in the metropolis.

“The total number of persons hospitalised for ailments (excluding child birth) was about 3.36 lakh, out of which males constituted 59.20 per cent in comparison to 40.80 per cent females. Out of hospitalised persons, 6.62 per cent cases were in rural, whereas, 93.38 per cent cases were reported in urban,” the report said. The urban-rural divide is not surprising, considering more than 97 per cent households were classified as urban.

More than 37 per cent of the hospitalisations took place because of infectious diseases, followed by injuries (13.82 per cent); musculo-skeletal issues (11.94 per cent); and gastro-intestinal, respiratory and psychiatric and neurological concerns (all at about 4.7 per cent).

In another disheartening find, the report says that just under a tenth of the household in rural Delhi and just under 8 per cent in urban Delhi have monthly per capita expenditure (MPCE) of up to ₹4,000 (or daily ₹134 or $2). The internationally accepted indicator for poverty stands at $2 per day per head.

Only 3.66 per cent of the rural households have an MPCE of over ₹24,000, while in the urban space, 11.93 per cent households fell under this bracket.

The expenditure capacity of a family is a big indicator of its ability to access quality healthcare, besides basics such as nutritional diet.

The rate of morbidity has increase in the city across sectors. In the previous round of this survey 1.6 per cent of rural Delhiites and 1.7 per cent of their urban counterparts reported ailments. In this round, this figure has gone up to 4.8 and 5 per cent, respectively.

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