Awareness about breastfeeding among women

New Delhi, January 08, 2018: According to National Family Health Survey 4 (2015-16), 41.6 percent of children in the country under age 3 years were breastfed within one hour of birth. State/UT wise details are given below:

Children under age 3 years breastfed within one hour of birth (%) – NFHS-4 (2015-16)

Further, according to the data uploaded by the States /UTs on the Health Management Information system (HMIS) portal of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), 1,83,10,666 newborns in the country were breastfed within one hour of birth during 2016-17. State/UT wise details are given below:

States/UTs wise number of newborns breastfed within one hour of birth during 2016-17

Serial No.	States/UTs	Number of Newborns breastfed within 1 hour of birth
1	Andaman and Nicobar Islands	4,023
2	Andhra Pradesh	7,03,848
3	Arunachal Pradesh	4,090
4	Assam	5,93,534
5	Bihar	19,77,535
6	Chandigarh	21,026
7	Chhattisgarh	4,48,049
8	Dadra and Nagar Haveli	6,120
9	Daman and  Diu	1,973
10	Delhi	1,98,179
11	Goa	13,054
12	Gujarat	10,62,720
13	Haryana	4,31,994
14	Himachal Pradesh	77,536
15	Jammu and Kashmir	1,74,133
16	Jharkhand	6,62,536
17	Karnataka	8,61,440
18	Kerala	4,27,907
19	Lakshadweep	800
20	Madhya Pradesh	12,84,984
21	Maharashtra	15,68,169
22	Manipur	34,832
23	Meghalaya	76,049
24	Mizoram	18,548
25	Nagaland	18,160
26	Odisha	5,80,439
27	Puducherry	34,077
28	Punjab	3,02,988
29	Rajasthan	12,70,703
30	Sikkim	5,590
31	Tamil Nadu	5,02,415
32	Telangana	3,56,685
33	Tripura	46,800
34	Uttar Pradesh	33,06,965
35	Uttarakhand	1,29,799
36	West Bengal	10,92,966
Source-Data as uploaded by the  States /UTs on HMIS portal (Status as on 22.12 2017)

MoHFW has implemented a nationwide programme called “Mother’s Absolute Affection (MAA)” under National Health Mission for promotion of breastfeeding practices.

• Capacity building of health staffs and Accredited Social Health Activists(ASHAs) in appropriate breastfeeding practices combined with 360 degree IEC (Information Education Communication) / BCC (Behaviour Change Communication) activities for breastfeeding promotion is under taken under this programme.

• In addition, carrying out of village level mothers’ meeting by ASHAs is one of the key activities of this MAA programme which aim to increase awareness about the importance of breastfeeding among women in India by community participation.

• MAA programme envisages the promotion of breastfeeding in health facilities as well as communities by making women aware as well providing skilled counselling support for appropriate breastfeeding practices.

• Breastfeeding promotion is being taken as a core thematic area during Ante Natal Care counselling to pregnant mothers and during Village Health and Nutrition Days meetings.

The Minister of State (Health and Family Welfare), Sh Ashwini Kumar Choubey stated this in a written reply in the LokSabha here today.