Unveiling Intersectionality: Caste and Gender Dynamics in Maternal Healthcare Utilization across Caste Groups in India – Insights from NFHS-3, NFHS-4, and NFHS-5

Amit Kumar Raja, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)
Abhijeet Kumar, National Institute of Education Planning and Administration New Delhi, India

This paper examines the intersectionality of caste and gender in maternal healthcare utilization in India, drawing insights from three rounds of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3, 2005-06; NFHS-4, 2015-16; NFHS-5, 2019-21). Maternal health outcomes and healthcare access are strongly influenced by socio-cultural factors, with caste playing a pivotal role in shaping these dynamics. The study investigates disparities in antenatal care (ANC), institutional deliveries, and postnatal care (PNC) across caste groups, including Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), and higher castes. This study employs the intersectionality concept to examine the ways in which gender and caste interact to exacerbate disadvantages, particularly for marginalised women. It also looks at how healthcare utilisation patterns have changed throughout the course of the three NFHS rounds. This paper uses descriptive and multivariate regression analyses to assess disparities and trends. Significant caste-based disparities still exist, despite improvements in healthcare access for all populations. Compared to women from upper castes, SC and ST women still have less access to ANC services and institutional deliveries. These results highlight the necessity of more focused strategies to tackle the unique difficulties encountered by women from lower castes, incorporating gender and caste viewpoints in health treatments.

Keywords: Health and Morbidity, Inequality, Disadvantage and Discrimination

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