Infant health: low birthweight in India

India: Infant health: low birthweight was 27.4 Percentage of live births in 2020. β–Ό Falling

Latest (2020)
27.4 Percentage of live births
Change on year
down 0.7%
World rank
1st
of 41 countries
All-time high
32.5 Percentage of live births
in 2000
All-time low
27.4 Percentage of live births
in 2020
Years of data
21
2000–2020

Infant health: low birthweight in India, 2000–2020

01020302000201020202000: 32.5 Percentage of live births2001: 32.3 Percentage of live births2002: 32.1 Percentage of live births2003: 31.8 Percentage of live births2004: 31.6 Percentage of live births2005: 31.3 Percentage of live births2006: 31 Percentage of live births2007: 30.8 Percentage of live births2008: 30.5 Percentage of live births2009: 30.3 Percentage of live births2010: 30 Percentage of live births2011: 29.7 Percentage of live births2012: 29.5 Percentage of live births2013: 29.2 Percentage of live births2014: 28.9 Percentage of live births2015: 28.7 Percentage of live births2016: 28.4 Percentage of live births2017: 28.1 Percentage of live births2018: 27.8 Percentage of live births2019: 27.6 Percentage of live births2020: 27.4 Percentage of live births

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of live births.

Analysis

India recorded 27.4 Percentage of live births for infant health: low birthweight in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 21 years on record.

That represents a change of down 0.7% on the previous year and down 8.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, infant health: low birthweight in India peaked at 32.5 Percentage of live births in 2000 and was at its lowest, 27.4 Percentage of live births, in 2020.

India ranks 1st of 41 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 31.42 Percentage of live births 30.3 Percentage of live births 32.5 Percentage of live births 10
2010s 28.79 Percentage of live births 27.6 Percentage of live births 30 Percentage of live births 10
2020s 27.4 Percentage of live births 27.4 Percentage of live births 27.4 Percentage of live births 1

Countries ranked near India

  1. 2 South Africa 16.6 Percentage of live births compare
  2. 3 Colombia 11 Percentage of live births compare
  3. 4 Thailand 10.3 Percentage of live births compare

See the full ranking of 51 places β†’

More health data for India

All data for India β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is infant health: low birthweight in India?
Infant health: low birthweight in India was 27.4 Percentage of live births in 2020, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest infant health: low birthweight recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 32.5 Percentage of live births in 2000.
What is the lowest infant health: low birthweight recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 27.4 Percentage of live births in 2020.
How does India rank for infant health: low birthweight?
India ranks 1st out of 41 countries with data for 2020.
Is infant health: low birthweight rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is down 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this India data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Infant health: low birthweight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Infant health: low birthweight in India. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/infant-health-low-birthweight/india/

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About this data

Indicator
Infant health: low birthweight
Unit
Percentage of live births
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
51 places, 2,043 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset presents time series on the number of live births weighing less than 2500 grams as a percentage of the total number of live births. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.