Srinagar, Jun 11: The newly-released National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) places J&K among the highest C-section states and Union Territores in India.
At the same time, data from National Sample Survey indicates that childbirth continues to impose significant out-of-pocket costs on families.
The cost of cesarean section deliveries is more than just financial.
J&K has one of the highest institutional delivery rates in India.
According to NFHS-6, 93.6 percent of births in J&K took place in health institutions.
This is well above the national average of 90.6 percent institutional births.
Of the institutional deliveries, it is a significant finding that over 80 percent of women gave birth in public hospitals.
A total of 19.7 percent of institutional deliveries took place in private hospitals.
In most parts of India, high C-Section rates are usually blamed on private hospitals because they have a financial incentive for a C-Section.
Nationally, in private hospitals, 54.1 percent deliveries in private hospitals are through C-Section.
This is a stark contrast to 16.9 percent C-Section deliveries in public hospitals.
Here is where J&K’s C-Section figures come as a shock: public hospitals cater to 8 out of every 10 women delivering, yet nearly half (48.6 percent) of deliveries are through C Section.
This rise, therefore, cannot be explained by private-sector incentives only.
The latest figures accessed by Greater Kashmir from Kashmir’s largest maternity hospital, Lal Ded Hospital, show an extraordinarily high volume of surgical deliveries, consistent with the wider trend. Between, April 2025 and March 2026, in one year, 20,520 deliveries took place at this hospital.
Of these, 14,507 were C-Sections, and 6013 were normal deliveries. This means nearly 71 percent of all deliveries at the hospital were conducted through Caesarean.
That is substantially higher than the averages for both J&K and the national average.
Although the figure is not unexpected for a tertiary referral maternity hospital, it still strikes as an eye-opener.
Tertiary care facilities like Lal Ded Hospital receive complicated pregnancies, high-risk referrals, fetal distress cases, repeat C-sections and emergency obstetric cases.
NFHS-6 (2023-24) reports that 51 percent of births in J&K were delivered through C-Sections, a sharp rise from 41.7 percent in NFHS-5 (2019-21), just five years ago.
While Telangana has more than 62 percent of births by C-section and Andhra Pradesh more than 52%, these states are exceptions. The national average of C-Sections is 27.2 percent.
The National Sample Survey, NSO report released last month provides state-level childbirth expenditure tables.
As per this survey, the all-India average expenditure per childbirth in government hospitals is Rs 2299. In private hospitals, it is Rs 37,630. In J&K, this survey reveals a childbirth costs Rs 3867 in a public hospital and Rs 42,746 in private hospitals.
This is significantly higher than most states. However, the cost of a C-Section is not only monetary. C-Section rates like that of J&K are far above the level considered optimal by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
As per WHO, population-level rates above 10–15% do not translate into better maternal or neonatal outcomes.
Experts believe that sustained C-Section rates have significant implications for maternal and child health.
While C-Section availability has dramatically improved the maternal and infant mortality across India, unnecessary surgical births expose women to higher risks.
The risks of infection, excessive bleeding, anesthesia-related complications, and longer recovery times make C-Sections a procedure that must be weighed before being administered.
Moreover, women who undergo C-Sections are also more likely to undergo repeat C-Sections in subsequent pregnancies. In addition, the risk of other gynecological problems is also undeniable.
