SRS surveys (1980s)

• Exhaustive survey of population and housing

• Started in 1871-72
• Last census: 1 March 2001
• Frequency: decennial (no interruption), usually conducted in March

• Office of Registrar General of India, Delhi and regional offices
• Enumeration conducted by temporary employees (including local officials)

• Operations: house numbering, house listing, population enumeration (Census), post-enumeration survey
• Conducted at individual, household (and village) level.
• Exhaustive

• Data now published at village/tehsil/district/town/ state level
• Volume: more than one thousand volumes published every ten years (from district to country level)
• Census newsletter (PDF)

• Paper format: volumes of the Census of India (tables, analysis, special analyses)
• Old census volumes on microfiches (from 1871 to 1971)
• Electronic format: many tables on CD, some tables and reports on web
• Raw data: not available

• Socioeconomic and demographic characteristics (individual level)
• Housing amenities, household goods (household level)
• Infrastructure and land use data from other sources (village level)

• http://www.censusindia.gov.in/ (new reoganized website with tables, maps, publication list, some reports-including old ones-, etc.)
• http://www.censusindia.gov.in/maps/censusgis/Census_GIS/maps.htm (for customized mapping)
• http://www.chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/default.htm (digital version of first colonial census volumes 1871-1901)

• More and more states have now their own Census websites.
• Check on google for "Census + Andra Pradesh", Himachal, Kerala, Orissa, Gujarat, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu etc.

• Indispensable as the only exhaustive source on Indian population.
• Most economic, social and demographic characteristics are covered

• No raw data available
• Limited village data available
• Publication delays vary from one month to ten years

• Tables immediately available from the web
• Census maps from the web
• New information included in 2001 Census (agriculture, mobility, etc.)
• Permanent location number
• La Trobe University has alreday scanned reports from 1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901 censuses

• Exhaustive registration of vital events (births, deaths) with additional particulars

• Started in the 19th century (1850s in some cities)
• Currently running

• Office of Registrar General of India, Delhi, and various state-level bodies (department of public health, statistics, etc.)
• Enumeration conducted by local officials in rural areas
• Voluntary registration in urban areas (taluk office, etc.)

• Registration of all births and deaths

• Data published at district/town/ state level.
• Data may also be published at lower level (urban wards, taluk, etc.) in specific states
• Volume: one volume per year for India.
• Information at state level may be included in State reports.

• Paper format: Civil registration in India series
• Electronic format: some tables may be available on various web site
• Raw data: not available

• Births: sex, age of mother, etc.
• Deaths: sex, age, cause of death, etc.
• No data available on migration, marriage, divorce, etc.

• www.censusindia.net (very limited information available)
• More and more information available on specific State website. See for example for Delhi or Gujarat, but on the whole, it is a matter of luck.

• Indispensable as the only potentially exhaustive source on births and deaths

• Coverage and registration level vary from somewhat reliable to very poor
• Publication delays vary from five years to ten years
• Detailed cross tabulations not available

• Major improvements in the CR system are now under way with the launching of the 2003 campaign on birth certificates (see information)
• Unpublished district-wise data may be available at the ORG in Delhi if you meet the right people at the right moment (avoid tea time)

• Sample registration of vital events (births, deaths) with additional particulars
• Provides estimated vital rates to supplement defective civil registration

• Started in 1964-65 (pilot surveys), operational since 1970
• Currently running
• Frequency: annual reports based on continuous enumeration of vital events

• Office of Registrar General of India, Delhi, and regional offices
• Enumeration conducted by temporary employees (including local officials)

• Conducted at individual, household (and village) level.
• Sample (state level and rural/urban): 6671 units in 2000 (2235 urban units) covering 6.3 million people (1.4 in urban areas)

• Data published at state level (with rural/urban differentials)
• Volume: one volume per year.
• SRS bulletin (annual)
• Additional volumes: special studies (life tables, compendia, etc.)

• Paper format: annual volume (tables, analysis) and special analyses
• Electronic format: some more tables on the web
• Raw data: not available

• Births: sex, age of mother, rank, etc.
• Deaths: sex, age, cause of death, etc.
• Medical attendance at delivery, death
• special studies on SRS data (life tables, etc.)
• No data available on economic status, marriage, divorce, etc.

• www.censusindia.net (latest information available for 2004)

• Indispensable as the only dependable estimates on regional birth and deaths rates (including infant, child and maternal mortality)
• Good quality of estimates (with regional and temporal variation though)
• Special reports available (but alas not on the web)

• Data published only at state level
• No raw data available

• Samples renewed
• Data more regularly published on the Census website

• Large-scale survey on reproductive health
• Provides estimates on health and demographic behaviour at state level

• NFHS 1 in 1992-93
• NFHS 2 in 1998-99
• NFHS 3 in 2005-06

• IIPS, Mumbai, is the coordinating agency (with USAID, ORC Macro, East-West Center)
• State surveys conducted by Population Research Centres, private organizations etc.
• Enumeration conducted by temporary employees after intensive training

• Conducted at individual, household (and community) level.
• Sample size for NFHS 2: 89199 women, 91196 households in all states

• Data published at state level (with rural/urban differentials)
• Volume: one volume per state. Additional studies also available

• Paper format: regional and national volumes (tables, analysis) and special analyses
• Electronic format: most reports available on the web (PDF format)
• Raw data: available on CD (can also be downloaded from the web)

• Reproductive health: nuptiality, fertility, family planning, maternal and natal care, aids awareness, nutrition, etc.

• www.nfhsindia.org/ (all published reports)
• www.measuredhs.com/ (access to raw data)

• the major source on health and demographic behaviour at the individual and regional level. Provides more information than any other demographic survey
• State reports published and available for download
• Raw data available for further research

• Data published only at state level (or substate units), but not available for districts or cities
• Data quality varies
• geographical information is still sparse

• NFHS 2 made available in less than 2 years
• NFHS 3 covers quite a lot of new ground (including aids)

• District-level survey on reproductive and child health and on government services (facility survey)

• RHS 1 in 1998-99 (in two phases)
• RHS 2 in 2002-03 (in two phases)

• IIPS, Mumbai, is the coordinating agency
• State surveys conducted by Population Research Centres, private organizations etc.
• Enumeration conducted by temporary employees after intensive training

• Conducted at individual and household level.
• 1000 households per district ( 529 817 for India) with 474 463 women and 257 245 men interviewed
• conducted in two phases (with slightly modified questionnaires)

• Data published at national level with district estimates
• India volume published and additional (state or district) volumes scheduled

• Paper format: regional and national volumes (tables, analysis)
• Electronic format: a few reports are available on the web (PDF format)
• Raw data: available on CD from IIPS

• Ante Natal Care (ANC) and other health services, demographic behaviour, family planning, awareness about RTI/STI and HIV/AIDS, user's satisfaction
• Health Infrastructure (trained staff, equipment, etc.)

• wwww.rchindia.org (includes some reports from Round 1 and some district results for Round 2, but the website is known to be unreliable)
• see also: http://health.nic.in/fsnfhs.htm which includes some of the results

• An unique source to assess the quality of government health services
• Data available at district level

• Regional reports not yet available
• Data quality varies

• Round 2 includes further dimensions (nutritional status, attitude of husbands)

• SRS surveys on mortality and fertility
• Surveys conducted from the SRS sample by the ORG (see above for details on SRS)

• 1972 and 1979 for all states

• Conducted on the SRS sample at state level (with urban/rural differentials)

• Paper format: national volumes (tables, analysis)
• No electronic format
• Raw data not available

• Mortality (1979)
• Fertility (1972, 1979)

• The first reliable all-India surveys before the NFHS)
• Limited data available

• Multiple Indicator Survey 2000
• Surveys designed by Unicef to assess the situation of children at the end of the century
• Department of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Human Resources Development

• 2000 for all states

• 119305 households for India
• Stratified by state and urban/rural

• Summary report published in November 2001
• No raw data available so far
• http://www.childinfo.org/MICS2/newreports/india/india.htm (report)

• Household characteristics
• School attendance, health status, nutrition, education, family planning, morbidity, registration of births

• Uttar Pradesh and Bihar 1997-98: Survey of Living Conditions
• This study utilized both qualitative methods – rapid rural appraisal (RRA) & participatory rural appraisal (PRA) methodologies, and semi-structured interviews – as well as quantitative methods drawing on data collected from household and community surveys modelled after the World Bank’s Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) surveys.

• 1997-1998 in Bihar and UP

• 25 districts 120 villages 2,250 households
• South and eastern Uttar Pradesh and north and central Bihar.

• No report available
• For work derived from it, see http://www.worldbank.org/lsms/research/country3.html
• Documentation and data available from: http://www.worldbank.org/html/prdph/lsms/country/india/upbhhome.html

• Household characteristics: composition, income, agricultural production, expenses, food vulnerability, reproductive helath
• Village characteristics (infrastructures, migration, accessibility).