Infant mortality rate (IMR)
IMR = Infant Mortality Rate- How often
- Each new editionSRS Statistical Report, yearly
- Last released
- 20 May 20262024
2024, down from 25 in 2023.
Events on this chart
Source: RGI (SRS), released 20 May 2026 · Chart: Clarity UPSC
- Previous
- 252023
- Highest
- 302019
- Lowest
- 242024
6 readings since 2019.
Story
How many babies out of 1,000 born alive die before their first birthday.
What is happening now As of 2024
The Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report 2024, published in May 2026, puts India's Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) at 24 in 2024, one point lower than in 2023. It was 30 in 2019, so it has fallen by about one point a year. Over those five years rural IMR fell from 34 to 27 and urban IMR from 20 to 17. The report notes that 1 in every 42 babies still dies before the first birthday: 1 in 37 in rural areas and 1 in 59 in urban areas.
Most of these deaths come soon after birth. The newborn (neonatal) death rate is 18 per 1,000 live births, and 72.8% of infant deaths happen in the first 28 days, so India is still above the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 12 or less. Among the bigger states, Chhattisgarh has the highest IMR (36) and Kerala the lowest (8). For about 95.4% of births in 2024, the mother received medical attention at delivery in a government or private hospital.
Why it matters
The Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is one of the clearest signs of a country's health. The Office of the Registrar General of India calls it an important indicator of the health status of the country. A baby's survival depends on the mother's health in pregnancy, on care at birth and in the first weeks, and on conditions at home, so the IMR shows how far health care and decent living conditions reach families.
The IMR is published for every bigger state, for rural and urban areas and for boys and girls, so it shows where babies are most at risk and where health programmes need to do more. It sits between the two measures in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.2, which aims to cut newborn (neonatal) deaths to 12 or less and under-five deaths to 25 or less per 1,000 live births by 2030.
What it is
The Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is the number of babies who die before their first birthday for every 1,000 live births in a year. The Office of the Registrar General of India, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, estimates it every year through the Sample Registration System (SRS).
The SRS is a large demographic survey in all states and union territories. In each sample village or urban block, a resident part-time enumerator records births and deaths as they happen, and a full-time supervisor conducts an independent survey every six months. The two records are then matched. In 2024 the SRS covered 8,839 sample units.
A lower IMR is better. The SRS calls IMR a widely accepted crude indicator of the overall health of a country or region. Rural IMR remains well above urban IMR.
Read this number
- The publisher
- The Office of the Registrar General of India runs the Census and the Sample Registration System, which measures births and deaths.
Terms on this page (3)
- MMR
- Maternal Mortality Ratio
- SDG
- Sustainable Development Goal
- SRS
- Sample Registration System
History
- 1964-65The Sample Registration System (SRS) starts on a pilot basis.
- 1969-70The SRS runs at full scale.
- 1971The Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is 129 infant deaths per 1,000 live births.
- 2014IMR is 39: 43 in rural areas and 26 in urban areas.
- 2026The SRS Statistical Report 2024, published in May 2026, gives annual IMR estimates for 2019 to 2024.
Readings
| Period | Value | Status | Released |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 24 | Final | 20 May 2026 |
| 2023 | 25 | Final | 20 May 2026 |
| 2022 | 26 | Final | 20 May 2026 |
| 2021 | 27 | Final | 20 May 2026 |
| 2020 | 28 | Final | 20 May 2026 |
| 2019 | 30 | Final | 20 May 2026 |
For UPSC
The Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is per 1,000 live births and the Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) per 1,00,000 live births; both come from the Sample Registration System (SRS) of the Registrar General of India, under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.2 covers neonatal (12 or less) and under-five (25 or less) mortality.