Working Mothers and Child Survival in Rural India-Insights from Spatial Patterns

Working Mothers and Child Survival in Rural India Insights from Spatial Patterns N Krishnaji This paper analyses the levels and gender differentials in child mortality across the rural parts of the Indian states in relation to the work status and work participation rates among women and two other correlates of mortality, viz, fertility and female literacy. Since states are large and some of them contain sub-regions which vary considerably with respect to both agro-economic and cultural factors, the correlations are examined in more detail at the district and sub-regional levels as they are observed in Andhra Pradesh. The paper concludes with a discussion of the main issues.