Tenure Security and Urban Social Protection Links: India

Guaranteeing tenure security to the households living in informal settlements (slums) has not seen any progress in urban India. This is because the policymakers have failed to see land tenure status as a continuum from insecure tenure to a legal status. In general, the poor in the cities move from informal to quasi?legal ( de facto ) tenure through various processes, and then to legal tenure ( de jure ) in cases of a public policy intervention that confers property title on them. In the absence of such a policy, the urban poor and low?income migrants can seek to consolidate their urban citizenship through political citizenship in an electoral democracy, through welfare interventions by the state and above all, through their own subversions of urban legalities. This article first illustrates the existence of a continuum of tenure status in informal settlements in Ahmedabad City. It explains the factors that give a slum settlement a particular level of tenure status; and then through quantitative data, links the level of tenure security to social protection outcomes. The article shows that through small public actions, it is possible to improve access of the urban poor to social protection measures and that it is not necessary to leapfrog to extending property rights to the dwellers of these informal settlements. It is essential to realise that if land titles are given in a society where other rights are not present, the poor will not be able to retain them

Human Resources for Health Observer Series No. 16

This study on the health workforce is based on data at district level from the Indian census of 2001. The census of India 2001 canvassed information on the occupation of main and marginal workers, which is coded using the National Classification of occupations (NCO) 2004 at four-digit level. There are 19 distinct occupations of health workers at the four-digit level in NCO, which have been aggregated into nine separate categories for the purposes of this study (Table 1). In addition, we have further aggregated some of these categories to form relevant groups, namely all health workers, all doctors and nurses, all doctors and AYUSH doctors. The data for this study were specifically extracted for each district in the country from the 2001 census by the Office of the Registrar General of India. These data on main plus marginal health workers consist of district tables that cross-classify the nine health worker categories by four education levels and by medical qualification; the data are also disaggregated by urban-rural stratum and gender of worker. This information is contained in four pages of tables for each of the country’s 593 districts

Determinants of neonatal mortality in rural India, 2007-2008.

Background. Despite the growing share of neonatal mortality in under-5 mortality in the recent decades in India, most studies have focused on infant and child mortality putting neonatal mortality on the back seat. The development of focused and evidence-based health interventions to reduce neonatal mortality warrants an examination of factors affecting it. Therefore, this study attempt to examine individual, household, and community level factors affecting neonatal mortality in rural India.Data and methods. We analysed information on 171,529 singleton live births using the data from the most recent round of the District Level Household Survey conducted in 2007–08. Principal component analysis was used to create an asset index. Two-level logistic regression was performed to analyse the factors associated with neonatal deaths in rural India.Results. The odds of neonatal death were lower for neonates born to mothers with secondary level education (O R = 0.60, p = 0.01) compared to those born to illiterate mothers. A progressive reduction in the odds occurred as the level of fathers’ education increased. The odds of neonatal death were lower for infants born to unemployed mothers (O R = 0.89, p = 0.00) compared to those who worked as agricultural worker/farmer/laborer. The odds decreased if neonates belonged to Scheduled Tribes (O R = 0.72, p = 0.00) or ‘Others’ caste group (O R = 0.87, p = 0.04) and to the households with access to improved sanitation (O R = 0.87, p = 0.02), pucca house (O R = 0.87, p = 0.03) and electricity (O R = 0.84, p = 0.00). The odds were higher for male infants (O R = 1.21, p = 0.00) and whose mother experienced delivery complications (O R = 1.20, p = 0.00). Infants whose mothers received two tetanus toxoid injections (O R = 0.65, p = 0.00) were less likely to die in the neonatal period. Children of higher birth order were less likely to die compared to first birth order.Conclusion. Ensuring the consumption of an adequate quantity of Tetanus Toxoid (TT) injections by pregnant mothers, targeting vulnerable groups like young, first time and Scheduled Caste mothers, and improving overall household environment by increasing access to improved toilets, electricity, and pucca houses could also contribute to further reductions in neonatal mortality in rural India. Any public health interventions aimed at reducing neonatal death in rural India should consider these factors

Understanding pregnancy-related morbidity and mortality among young women in Rajasthan

This report is the result of an exploratory study of the pregnancy-related morbidity and mortality experiences of women who delivered in adolescence and adulthood in Rajasthan, undertaken by the Population Council with support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

Broadening Girls' Horizons: Effects of Life Skills Education Programme in Rural Uttar Pradesh

This report is the result of a collaborative project undertaken by Prerana and the Population Council to implement a life skills education programme for unmarried adolescent girls in rural Uttar Pradesh and to evaluate its effectiveness. The intervention programme aimed to empower unmarried adolescent girls aged 13-17 years and address their vulnerabilities by building their agency; fostering egalitarian gender role attitudes; building awareness about sexual and reproductive health matters; developing vocational skills and future work aspirations; and influencing perceptions about marriage and their ability to negotiate marriage-related decisions, delaying marriage and first pregnancy

Variations in visceral leishmaniasis burden, mortality and the pathway to care within Bihar, India

BACKGROUND: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) has been targeted by the WHO for elimination as a public health problem (< 1 case/10,000 people/year) in the Indian sub-continent (ISC) by 2020. Bihar State in India, which accounts for the majority of cases in the ISC, remains a major target for this elimination effort. However, there is considerable spatial, temporal and sub-population variation in occurrence of the disease and the pathway to care, which is largely unexplored and a threat to achieving the target. METHODS: Data from 6081 suspected VL patients who reported being clinically diagnosed during 2012-2013 across eight districts in Bihar were analysed. Graphical comparisons and Chi-square tests were used to determine differences in the burden of identified cases by season, district, age and sex. Log-linear regression models were fitted to onset (of symptoms)-to-diagnosis and onset-to-treatment waiting times to estimate their associations with age, sex, district and various socio-economic factors (SEFs). Logistic regression models were used to identify factors associated with mortality. RESULTS: Comparisons of VL caseloads suggested an annual cycle peaking in January-March. A 17-fold variation in the burden of identified cases across districts and under-representation of young children (0-5 years) relative to age-specific populations in Bihar were observed. Women accounted for a significantly lower proportion of the reported cases than men (41 vs 59%, P < 0.0001). Age, district of residence, house wall materials, caste, treatment cost, travelling for diagnosis and the number of treatments for symptoms before diagnosis were identified as correlates of waiting times. Mortality was associated with age, district of residence, onset-to-treatment waiting time, treatment duration, cattle ownership and cost of diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: The distribution of VL in Bihar is highly heterogeneous, and reported caseloads and associated mortality vary significantly across different districts, posing different challenges to the elimination campaign. Socio-economic factors are important correlates of these differences, suggesting that elimination will require tailoring to population and sub-population circumstances

Political Economy of Tribal Development : A Case Study of Andhra Pradesh

The tribal population in the State of Andhra Pradesh, and in the country as a whole, is the most deprived and vulnerable community that faces severe economic exclusion. Although certain constitutional safeguards are provided, no significant economic, social and political mobility has taken place across this community. Contrary to Scheduled Castes and other Backward Castes who witnessed certain degrees of progress because of protective discrimination policies of the government, the Scheduled Tribes remain abysmally backward and socially excluded, still living in harsh environs. Our paper on "Political Economy of Tribal Development : A Case Study of Andhra Pradesh", delineates the situation of the Scheduled Tribes in the background of various policies of the state during the successive plan periods and its impact on their socio-economic mobility. Politically, this community is the most voiceless in the state. Their unsecured livelihood position in terms of lack of legal entitlements of the resources they use, both land and non-timber forest produce, push them into deep economic vulnerability. The paper also discusses the implications of the new act - Forest Right Act, 2006, on the livelihood security of the tribal communities and whether this act will finally lead to the inclusion of these people into the mainstream.Andhra Pradesh, India, economic exclusion, caste system, socio-economic mobility, Forest Right Act 2006

Attitudes Towards and Prevalence of Son Preference and Sex Selection in South Asian American Communities in the United States

This report summarizes research conducted by Generations Ahead, a social justice non-profit in the United States, within the South Asian American community. This research examines attitudes towards and prevalence of son preference and sex selective practices through focus groups and interviews with and a survey of South Asian Americans

Trends and Levels of Female Literacy in Belagavi District

Women education plays a very important role in the overall growth of the country. It does not only help in the development of half of the human capital but also improves the standard of living. The progress of the nation or region is shown by the level of education and literacy of its population. Education, particularly among women has been considered as one of the major aspects for socio-economic development of the people of a region. Belagavi district is among the rapidly developing districts in Karnataka with respect to socio-economic and agricultural development. According to 2011 census, average literacy rate of Belagavi district (73.48%) is lower than the average literacy rate of Karnataka state (75.60%).(Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India, 2011) This can be attributed to greater regional disparities throughout Belagavi district in literacy. In this paper, we present Provisional Population Totals of census 2001 and 2011 and examine the extent of literacy disparities at the taluk level. Here, we found that literacy rate in the study area was 64.21 % in 2001 which has increased to 73.48% in 2011. We also found that the urban literacy (85.56%) is significantly greater than the rural literacy (69.28%) which is concurrent to the wider gender disparities from the rural to the urban population