Question

What is India's rank in Save the Children's "End of Childhood Index 2018"?
A) 116th
B) 113th
C) 118th
D) 110th

Answer 1

Hint: Save the Children- “End of Childhood Index” is the index that analyses countries based on a set of factors that depict life-altering events such as poor health, malnutrition, exclusion from education, child labour, child marriage, early pregnancy, and excessive violence.

Complete answer:
India is ranked 113th out of 175 countries on the index of 2018 that measures children's well-being. The End of Childhood Index is part of Save the Children's Global Childhood Report, a non-profit organisation that advocates for children's rights-based in the United Kingdom.

The index ranks countries based on eight parameters that measure the well-being of children and teenagers aged 0 to 19 years:
- The mortality rate among children of 5 years of age
- Growth-stunting malnutrition
- Inadequate education
- Child labour is illegal in the United States.
- Marriage at a young age
- Births of Adolescents
- Conflict-related displacement
- Homicide of a child

The index indicated that in the last two decades, India has cut its child death rate by 55 percent. Between 2000 and 2019, the global number of children under the age of five with a low height for age declined by 25%, from 198 million to 149 million. It also showed that, despite India's progress in providing free universal education to its children, around 20% of them (ages 8-16) remained out of school in 2018.

In the 18 years leading up to 2018, India's number of child weddings was cut in half, with marriage rates for the poorest girls falling at least as much as for everyone else. Girls under the age of 15 have experienced the greatest drop. Since 2000, India has reduced adolescent births by 63 percent, resulting in the birth of 2 million fewer young mothers.

Therefore the correct answer is option ‘B’.

Note: To conclude the Index highlighted:
- Much of India's improvement has come as a result of social welfare programmes that have boosted access to sexual and reproductive health care and allowed more girls to stay in school.
- Child marriage has been prohibited in India since 2006, according to legislation such as the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act.
- Empowerment counselling, sexual and reproductive health information, vocational training, and life-skills development for girls have all been key community-based treatments.
- Child marriage has also been reduced because of programmes like conditional cash transfers for girls' education.