Improvements in access to electricity, drinking water, sanitation, banking services
Shillong, May 31: The National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) has indicated gradual improvements in living standards and basic infrastructure in Meghalaya with more households in the state having access to electricity, improved drinking water, sanitation and banking services.
The state’s 95.9 per cent population, as per NFHS-6 (2023-24), now lives in households with electricity, up from 91.9 per cent recorded in NFHS-5 (2019-21). Electricity coverage has risen up to 95.1 per cent in rural Meghalaya.
The NFHS, regarded as one of India’s most important datasets for tracking health, nutrition and socio-economic progress, and is widely used by governments, researchers and development agencies for policy planning and evaluation.
Access to improved drinking water sources also increased significantly.
The survey found that 84.3 per cent of the population now has access to improved drinking water sources, compared to 79.2 per cent in the previous survey. Urban coverage stood at 93.7 per cent, while rural coverage reached 82.2 per cent.
The figures indicate gradual improvements in access to basic amenities and the reach of welfare and infrastructure programmes across the state.
Sanitation coverage remained high, with 94.6 per cent of households using improved sanitation facilities.
The state also recorded strong gains in financial inclusion, with 93.5 per cent of households having at least one member with a bank or savings account.
The proportion of households using iodised salt also increased in NFHS-6, reflecting improved nutrition awareness and access to fortified food products.
The indicator measures the percentage of households consuming iodised salt, an essential micronutrient necessary for brain development, growth, and proper thyroid function.
Public health experts consider the indicator significant because iodine deficiency can lead to goitre, developmental problems in children, learning difficulties and other health disorders.
India has long promoted iodised salt as a major public health intervention to prevent iodine deficiency disorders. Higher consumption of iodised salt generally indicates better nutrition awareness, wider market access and improved public health outreach.
The survey further showed an increase in health insurance coverage.
About 74.9 per cent of households had at least one usual member covered under a health insurance or financing scheme, compared to 69 per cent in NFHS-5.
Internet usage saw one of the sharpest improvements, especially among women.
The percentage of women who had ever used the internet rose to 59 per cent from 34.7 per cent in the previous survey, while internet usage among men increased to 68.7 per cent from 36.5 per cent.
The survey also reflected gradual demographic changes in Meghalaya.
The proportion of children under 5 years declined to 8.9 per cent from 12.1 per cent, while the share of the population under 15 years fell to 34.1 per cent from 37.3 per cent.
At the same time, the proportion of people aged 60 years and above increased to 6.8 per cent from 4.9 per cent, indicating a slowly changing population structure in the state.
The NFHS also showed improvements in education and women’s empowerment indicators.
Women aged 15-49 years with 10 or more years of schooling increased to 37.5 per cent from 35.1 per cent earlier, while 81.5 per cent of women were found to have a bank or savings account that they themselves use.
