The second part of this two-part series on health care looks at various indices of health of the populations.

One of the most significant indices of the health of a people relates to fulfillment of ones most basic need – food. A hungry people cannot but be one of the strongest indicators of the failure of a society. Economic and military indicators mean little when a society cannot find it within itself to provide for food for all its children. India, along with Bangladesh and Nepal, has among the highest percentages of undernourished children (under the age of 5) at close to 50%. Little less than 40% of Pakistani children are undernourished, according to the Human Development Indices of UN for 2004, while almost 30% of children in Sri Lanka and Maldives are undernourished. This compares to 10% of Chinese children being undernourished.

When the nourishment of the entire population is considered, the numbers fall to over 30% for the Bangladeshi population, 25% for the Sri Lankan population and about 20% for the rest of South Asia for which numbers are available. Undernourishment in the larger population stays at about10% for China.

Life Expectancy at Birth provides another measure of the state of health of the people. The Chinese population has a life expectancy of 70 years. The Sri Lankan population, despite civil unrest and violence, has a life expectancy of about 75 years. The rest of South Asia has life expectancies between 60 and 70 years. Women in all these countries have a slightly higher life expectancy than men.

Another measure of the health is related to mortality rates at birth. Pakistan has the highest infant mortality rate at over 80 deaths per 1000 children born. Bhutan, Nepal and India also show high mortality rates at about 65 deaths per 1000 children. Sri Lanka, at about 20 deaths per 1000 children, has the best infant mortality rates in South Asia, even better than China at about 30.

Rates of maternal deaths during child birth provide insight into conditions of child birth and medical aid available. More significantly, perhaps, they point to the place of women in society. Nepal sees the highest maternal deaths during child birth followed by India, Pakistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Sri Lanka and Nepal, have much smaller maternal deaths and are comparable to statistics from China.

Two very common diseases in South Asia are tuberculosis and malaria. They are diseases that are well documented by governments and have well defined policies and processes for their control. The incidence of malaria and tuberculosis thus provide a keen insight into the commitment of the administration to deal with these diseases as well as the general health of the nation. Pakistan, Bangladesh, India and China have among the highest incidences of TB in the world. Malaria is much more controlled in most of South Asia.

With the increasing incidence of HIV in South Asia, it was important to include a snapshot of its occurrence. Clearly, HIV is a serious issue in India though numbers in Bangladesh and Nepal are also high. Numbers are not available for much of South Asia. One of the most significant strategies in control of HIV includes education and protection. China has very high prevalence of contraceptives as well as low incidence of HIV. The correlation is not as clearly seen in other parts of South Asia. Irrespective, it is clear that HIV is a serious threat to the health of Indians. It is not clear what policies the government of India is implementing to tackle this threat.

One measure that the UN survey reports is the rate of population growth. This is one of the most controversial indices with various groups ascribing diverse implications to this index. While it has a tenuous relationship with the health of a society, it is included here to encourage some discussion on the impact of population growth and planning around this index.