Telangana records highest birth growth in South
HYDERABAD: Telangana has emerged as the only southern state to record a significant increase in birth registrations over the past decade, according to the Report on Vital Statistics of India 2024, based on the Civil Registration System (CRS).
Birth registrations in the state increased from 6,12,489 in 2015 to 7,70,616 in 2024, marking a 25.8% rise. The growth is more than double the national increase of 10.1%, with births across India rising from 2.31 crore to 2.55 crore during the same period.
Southern states see decline
Unlike Telangana, other southern states recorded a decline in birth registrations. Kerala reported a 33.2% fall, Tamil Nadu 27.3%, Andhra Pradesh 20.1%, and Karnataka 5.8%.
Birth registrations in Telangana touched a peak of 8.41 lakh in 2019 before declining during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. Registrations recovered in 2022, dipped marginally in 2023, and rose to 7.71 lakh in 2024.
100% registration achieved
Telangana achieved 100% birth registration in both 2023 and 2024. Karnataka recorded 97.5%, Tamil Nadu 94.8%, Andhra Pradesh 89%, and Kerala 86.4%.
The state also recorded quicker registration of births. As many as 1,70,936 births were registered within 21 to 30 days, while only 11,533 registrations were made after one year.
Urban areas accounted for the majority of births, with 5,75,753 registrations compared with 1,94,888 in rural areas.
Female child ratio remains low
The sex ratio at birth continues to be a concern. In 2024, Telangana recorded 910 female births for every 1,000 male births, an improvement from 906 in 2022 but lower than 915 recorded in 2017.
Andhra Pradesh recorded 929 girls per 1,000 boys, while Kerala topped the southern states with 970, followed by Karnataka with 946
