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A Study of Spatial Variation of Women Health Status in Hugli District of West Bengal, India

Author Affiliations

  • 1 Asutosh College. 92, S.P. Mukherjee Road, Kolkata- 700026, INDIA

Int. Res. J. Social Sci., Volume 3, Issue (11), Pages 20-26, November,14 (2014)

Abstract

It is agreed worldwide that good health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of race, religion, sex, political belief and economic or social conditions. Beyond its intrinsic value for individuals, improving and protecting health is also central to overall human development and to the reduction of poverty. However, nourishment and health-care facilities that are available to women form areas of major concern in developing countries like India. In most of the parts of the country, women remain the neglected section of the society and are deprived of essentials of life that lead to deterioration in their health standards. Primacy of health sector in augmenting the development process is an undeniable fact. Yet, access to health services has continued to remain poor. The female population stands on the back foot in comparison to the males in the access to health infrastructure. Besides this, the status of maternal health condition among women is also in an alarming state in the country. As per West Bengal Human Development Report, 2010, the Hugli district in West Bengal occupies the third position in terms of gender development index and sixth in the human development ladder. Though the health infrastructure of the district is overall satisfactory, the status of women health poses serious concern. In fact, there is a great deal of inequality in the female health status at the sub-district block level. Given this scenario, it is imperative that the status of female health is explored in detail and the link between health infrastructure and female health outcome is examined at the block level. This paper seeks to run the exercise for Hugli district bringing out the intra-block regional variation. It is expected that this will enable to bring out the current sections of concern and aid in adopting necessary measures for improvement of the situation.

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