Karnataka has recorded significant improvements in women’s safety, maternal healthcare, and child health outcomes over the past five years, according to the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), 2023–24. The survey found that the state registered one of the steepest declines in spousal violence in the country, while also improving key indicators related to antenatal care, institutional deliveries, and child immunisation.
The prevalence of spousal violence among ever-married women aged 18–49 fell sharply from 44.4% in NFHS-5 (2019–21) to 14.1% in NFHS-6, a decline of 30.3 percentage points. According to the survey, 19.9% of rural women and 6.9% of urban women reported having experienced violence by their spouse.
The survey also recorded improvements in other indicators related to violence against women. Physical violence during pregnancy among ever-married women aged 18–49 declined from 5.8% in NFHS-5 to 2.9% in NFHS-6. The prevalence stood at 3.5% in rural areas and 2.2% in urban areas.
Reports of sexual violence before the age of 18 among women aged 18–29 also fell substantially. The prevalence dropped from 2.1% in NFHS-5 to 0.2% in NFHS-6, with no urban respondents reporting such experiences.
While most states recorded reductions in spousal violence, Kerala witnessed an increase from 9.8% to 17.7%, one of the largest rises recorded in the survey. Telangana, despite registering a decline from 37.2% to 30.8%, continued to report among the highest prevalence rates in the country. In rural Telangana, 33% of women reported experiencing spousal violence, compared with 24.8% in urban areas.
Among larger states, only Bihar reported a higher prevalence than Telangana at 36.1%. Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh each recorded a prevalence of 28.5%, while Andhra Pradesh reported 22.7%, close to the national average of 22.3%.
The survey showed notable gains in maternal healthcare coverage across Karnataka. The proportion of women receiving antenatal care during the first trimester increased from 71% to 82.4%, while those receiving at least four antenatal check-ups rose from 70.9% to 84.5%.
Institutional deliveries reached 98.7%, up from 97% in NFHS-5, while deliveries attended by skilled health personnel increased from 93.8% to 96.6%.
Maternal nutrition indicators also improved significantly. The proportion of pregnant women consuming iron and folic acid tablets for at least 100 days rose from 44.7% to 78%, while those consuming supplements for at least 180 days increased from 26.7% to 66.4%.
The survey further found that 97.6% of registered pregnancies received a Mother and Child Protection Card, while 95.9% of mothers were protected against neonatal tetanus.
C-section deliveries rise
Despite the improvements, NFHS-6 highlighted a sharp increase in caesarean section deliveries. Overall, 45.7% of births in Karnataka were delivered through C-section, compared with 31.5% in NFHS-5.
The rate was higher in urban areas at 52.6%, compared with 40.2% in rural areas. Caesarean deliveries accounted for 63.8% of births in private hospitals, nearly double the 34% recorded in public health facilities.
Child health and nutrition
Child health indicators showed encouraging progress. Full immunisation coverage among children aged 12–23 months increased from 84.3% to 90.2%. Coverage of the measles-containing vaccine stood at 95.6%, while 79.4% of children received the second dose.
Karnataka was also ranked 10th in the Child Rights Index, reflecting broader improvements in child welfare indicators.
Nutrition outcomes presented a mixed picture. Stunting among children under five declined significantly from 35.4% to 26.5%, while the proportion of underweight children fell from 32.9% to 27.8%.
However, wasting, an indicator of acute malnutrition, showed only marginal improvement, declining from 19.5% to 18.7%.
Feeding practices also remained a concern. Only 14.2% of children aged six to 23 months received an adequate diet, although this was an improvement from 10.6% in NFHS-5. The proportion receiving a minimum acceptable diet increased from 12.4% to 18.3%.
The findings are part of NFHS-6, conducted in 2023–24 by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai.