Number of maternal deaths in India

India: Number of maternal deaths was 23,753 deaths in 2020. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2020)
23,753 deaths
Change on year
down 13.5%
World rank
2nd
of 185 countries
All-time high
174,664 deaths
in 1985
All-time low
23,753 deaths
in 2020
Years of data
36
1985–2020

Number of maternal deaths in India, 1985–2020

050.0k100.0k150.0k1985200220201985: 174.7k deaths1986: 169.0k deaths1987: 156.2k deaths1988: 151.3k deaths1989: 148.7k deaths1990: 137.9k deaths1991: 136.0k deaths1992: 135.3k deaths1993: 135.2k deaths1994: 125.2k deaths1995: 124.6k deaths1996: 124.4k deaths1997: 123.7k deaths1998: 114.5k deaths1999: 113.2k deaths2000: 110.0k deaths2001: 107.1k deaths2002: 94.4k deaths2003: 89.4k deaths2004: 84.6k deaths2005: 79.0k deaths2006: 67.6k deaths2007: 63.2k deaths2008: 59.3k deaths2009: 55.6k deaths2010: 47.5k deaths2011: 44.8k deaths2012: 42.1k deaths2013: 39.7k deaths2014: 33.6k deaths2015: 31.7k deaths2016: 30.0k deaths2017: 28.8k deaths2018: 28.0k deaths2019: 27.4k deaths2020: 23.8k deaths

Source: UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths.

Analysis

The most recent figure for number of maternal deaths in India is 23,753 deaths, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.

That represents a change of down 13.5% on the previous year and down 50.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of maternal deaths in India peaked at 174,664 deaths in 1985 and was at its lowest, 23,753 deaths, in 2020.

India ranks 2nd of 185 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 159,974 deaths 148,655 deaths 174,664 deaths 5
1990s 127,005 deaths 113,174 deaths 137,917 deaths 10
2000s 81,027 deaths 55,602 deaths 110,010 deaths 10
2010s 35,359 deaths 27,448 deaths 47,528 deaths 10
2020s 23,753 deaths 23,753 deaths 23,753 deaths 1

Countries ranked near India

  1. 1 Nigeria 81,747 deaths compare
  2. 3 Democratic Republic of Congo 21,511 deaths compare
  3. 4 Ethiopia 10,246 deaths compare
  4. 5 Pakistan 9,809 deaths compare

See the full ranking of 185 places →

More health data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of maternal deaths in India?
Number of maternal deaths in India was 23,753 deaths in 2020, according to UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest number of maternal deaths recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 174,664 deaths in 1985.
What is the lowest number of maternal deaths recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 23,753 deaths in 2020.
How does India rank for number of maternal deaths?
India ranks 2nd out of 185 countries with data for 2020.
Is number of maternal deaths rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is down 50.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this India data come from?
The figures come from UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of maternal deaths. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Number of maternal deaths
Unit
deaths
Source
UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
185 places, 6,660 data points, 1985–2020
Last refreshed

The estimated number of maternal deaths in a given year.