Measurement
The National Family Health Survey consistently underestimates the proportion of young males and elderly females in India's population. Estimates of the sex ratio from the NFHS need to be used with caution.
Health
India has made large strides in reducing the annual incidence of malaria and deaths from the disease. However, malaria remains a major public health challenge, particularly in central and eastern states, and among young children
Road accidents are now the leading cause of death among young men in particular. Two-wheeler riders are at particular risk, and traffic violations play a major role
From having maternal mortality rates well above the world average two decades ago, India has seen a sharp fall in the risk of death during pregnancy. Yet, regional disparities exist, and India is some distance from meeting international commitments
India's states differ from each other not only in the sizes of their populations, but also in the sizes of their economies. While all states are growing, the rate of growth varies significantly between regions
Software service exports in particular have transformed the nature of international trade between India and the world
Most Indians can send messages, but far fewer have the information and communications technology (ICT) skills needed to do calculations, make presentations or write code. There are large gaps between rural and urban Indians, and between men and women.
India has made major strides in improving sanitation, but one in four rural households still does not have access to toilets
By official statistics, India has the largest number of reported deaths from road accidents of any country. But these are likely significant underestimates
Literacy rates are rising fast in India. But how literacy is defined matters, as does the manner in which surveys on literacy are conducted, resulting in some illiterate people being missed from official statistics
