Half of Manipuri women opt for two-child limit
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, May 27 2022:
Married women of Manipur do not want many children as per National Family Health Survey - 2019-20, which states that 45.9 per cent of women in the age group of 25-34 years want not more than two children.
As per the report, the percentage of women in different age groups, who want not more than two children is 27.2 per cent in 15-24 years; 45.9 per cent in 25-34 years; and 74.9 per cent in 35-49 years.
In terms of men, the percentage is 30.7 per cent in the age group of 25-34 years and 61.5 per cent in 35 49 years.
From the religious viewpoint, the percentage of women who want to limit the children to two is 67.6 per cent among Hindu and others; 29.8 per cent among Muslim, and 29.8 per cent among Christian.
The percentage of men in religious category is 58.9 per cent among Hindu and others, 51.8 per cent among Muslim and 29.5 per cent among Christian.
On the other-hand, 67.8 per cent of SC women do not want more than two children while the figure for other categories is 40.8 per cent in ST group and 59.5 per cent in OBC group.
According to the report, 19.5 per cent of the married women of the state do not have any child, 54.9 per cent have only one child, 76.6 per cent have two children, 82.8 per cent have three children and 88.1 per cent have four or more children.
Men prefer daughter more than women in the state whereas, 23.3 per cent of married women want their first child as son and 65 per cent of women want their first child as daughter.
However, 92.6 per cent of the total married women of the state want at least one son while 90.6 per cent of married women want at least one daughter.
The report further stated that 52 per cent of married women in the age group of 15 to 19 years want daughter while 58 per cent of married women in the age group of 20-29 years want son.
At the same time, 75 per cent of married women in the age group of 30-39 years want daughter.
According to the report, 0.7 per cent of married men in the age group of 20-29 years want daughter and 4.9 per cent in the age group of 30-39 years want daughter while 4 per cent in 40-49 years want daughter, the report said.