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Table 2 Characteristics of essential sources of health information in India, 2008.

From: Essential health information available for India in the public domain on the internet

Essential source [10] Year started Periodicity; last year conducted Category of information Lowest geographical level Availability of information in the public domain*
1. Census [19] 1872 10 years; 2001 ◦ Morbidity & health status City/town/village +
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
2. Birth and death registration
a) National birth and death registration system [20–22] 1969 Ongoing ◦ Mortality & causes of death State +
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
b) Sample registration system [6, 23] 1969 Ongoing ◦ Mortality & causes of death State +
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
3. Surveillance and response system
a) HIV Sentinel Surveillance [8, 24] 1998 Annual; 2007 ◦ Morbidity & health status District† +
b) National Crime Records Bureau "Accidental deaths and suicides in India" [25] 1967 Annual; 2007 ◦ Mortality & causes of death State +
c) National Cancer Registry Programme [26] 1981 Variable; 2003 ◦ Mortality & causes of death City‡ +
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
    ◦ Service provision   
d) Integrated Disease Surveillance Project [9] 2003 Ongoing ◦ Mortality & causes of death Not known 0
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
e) National Polio Surveillance Project [27] 1997 Ongoing ◦ Morbidity & health status State +++
f) National Vector Borne Diseases Control Programme [28] Not available Ongoing ◦ Mortality & causes of death State +
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
4. Household surveys
a) Reproductive and Child Health District Level Household Surveys [29] 1998 4–5 years; 2007/8 ◦ Morbidity & health status District§ +++§
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Service provision   
b) National Family Health Surveys [30] 1990 6–7 years; 2005/6 ◦ Mortality State +++
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Service provision   
c) National Sample Survey on household consumer expenditure [31] 1972 5 years for large samples (surveys on small samples since 1986/7); 2005/6 ◦ Health financing State ++
d) National Sample Survey on nutritional intake in India [32] 1972 5–6 years; 2004/5 ◦ Morbidity & health status State ++
    ◦ Risk factors   
e) National Sample Survey on morbidity, health care and the condition of the aged [33] 1973 Variable (conducted twice); 2004 ◦ Morbidity & health status State ++
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Service provision   
f) World Health Survey [34] 2003 Once; 2003 ◦ Mortality & causes of death State|| +++
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Service provision   
    ◦ Human resources   
g) National Sample Survey on condition of urban slums [35] 1976 Variable (conducted thrice); 2002 ◦ Risk factors State ++
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
h) National Sample Survey on disabled persons in India [36] 1981 10–11 years; 2002 ◦ Morbidity & health status State ++
i) National Sample Survey report on village facilities [37] 1950 Variable; 2002 ◦ Risk factors State ++
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
j) UNICEF Multiple Indicator Survey [38] 2000 Once; 2000 ◦ Morbidity & health status State +
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Service provision   
k) National Sample Survey on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene [39] 1988 Variable (conducted thrice); 1998 ◦ Risk factors State ++
l) World Bank Survey of Living Conditions in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar [40] 1997/8 Once; 1997/8 ◦ Morbidity & health status State¶ +
    ◦ Risk factors   
    ◦ Service provision   
m) National Sample Survey on maternal and child health care in India [41] 1995/6 Once; 1995/6** ◦ Risk factors State ++
    ◦ Service provision   
n) National Sample Survey on consumption of tobacco in India, 1993–94 [42] 1993/4 Once; 1993/4** ◦ Risk factors State ++
5. Service generated data
a) Family Welfare Statistics in India [43] 1974 Variable; 2006 ◦ Service provision State +
b) Performance of Cataract Surgery under National Programme for Control of Blindness [44] Not available Ongoing ◦ Service provision State +
c) Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme [45] 1997 Ongoing ◦ Service provision District†† +++
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
    ◦ Human resources   
6. Mapping of health facilities
a) Bulletin on Rural Health Statistics [46] Not available Annual; 2007 ◦ Health infrastructure State; some district +
    ◦ Human resources   
b) National Health Profile [47] 1953 Annual; 2007 ◦ Morbidity & health status State +++¶¶
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
    ◦ Human resources   
c) WHO "Antiretroviral Therapy Service Map" [48] 2006 Once; 2006 ◦ Service provision State +
d) Reproductive and Child Health Facility Survey [49] 1998 5 years; 2003 ◦ Service provision State +++‡‡
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
    ◦ Human resources   
e) Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh & National Informatics Centre health maps [50] 2007§§ Once; 2001 ◦ Health infrastructure District +++¶¶
7. Behavioural surveillance
a) NACO Behavioural Surveillance Surveys [51] 2001 5 years; 2006 ◦ Risk factors State +
    ◦ Service provision   
b) National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau time trend surveys [52] 1972 8–13 years; 1996/7 ◦ Risk factors State|||| +
c) Integrated Disease Surveillance Project [9] 2003 Ongoing ◦ Risk factors Not known 0
d) Sample Registration System [23, 53] 2001 Ongoing ◦ Risk factors State +***
8. National Health Accounts [54] 2001/2 3 years; 2004/5††† ◦ Health financing State +++
9. Financial and management information
a) Ministry of Health and Family Welfare "Annual Report" [55] Not available Annual; 2007/8 ◦ Health infrastructure National +++¶¶
    ◦ Human resources   
    ◦ Health financing   
b) Planning Commission "Five Year Plan" [56] 1950 5 years; 2007 ◦ Health infrastructure National +++¶¶
    ◦ Human resources   
    ◦ Health financing   
c) National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health [57] 2005 Once; 2005 ◦ Health infrastructure State +++¶¶
    ◦ Human resources   
    ◦ Health financing   
10. Modelling, estimates and projections
a) National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health [57] 2004 Once; 2005 ◦ Mortality & causes of death National; +++¶¶
    ◦ Morbidity & health status some state  
    ◦ Health infrastructure   
    ◦ Human resources   
    ◦ Health financing   
b) Global Burden of Disease and Risk Factors Study [16] 1990 Variable; 2002‡‡‡ ◦ Mortality & causes of death National +++
    ◦ Morbidity & health status   
    ◦ Risk factors   
  1. *Availability of information: +++ means all types of information produced freely available (reports, details, microdata and metadata as applicable), ++ all types available but with restrictions, + means some available (e.g. report or spreadsheet, but no microdata), and 0 means none available.
  2. †At time of writing this paper, district level estimates available for 2006 for HIV prevalence among antenatal clinic attendees and patients with sexually transmitted diseases; estimates of state level population HIV prevalence available for 2007.
  3. ‡Only for registry locations; population-based registries at Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Barshi, Bhopal, Chennai, Delhi, Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Imphal, Kollam, Kolkata, Mizoram, Mumbai, Nagpur, Pune, Sikkim, Silchar, Thiruvananthapuram; hospital-based registries at Bangalore, Chennia, Mumbai, Dibrugarh.
  4. §At the time of writing this paper, reports, metadata and microdata available for district level for 2002–2004 survey; state level reports available for 2007/8 survey.
  5. ||Only for the states of Assam, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal; national pooled estimates also available.
  6. ¶Only for the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
  7. **Part of a regular household consumption survey, but these are the only reports on maternal and child health, and tobacco consumption available.
  8. †† District level only for service provision; infrastructure and human resources information available for state level.
  9. ‡‡At the time of writing this paper, reports, metadata and microdata available for the 2003 survey.
  10. §§Maps produced in 2007 using 2001 census data.
  11. |||| Only for the states of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal.
  12. ¶¶Only reports available; these are not primary data collection sources, so microdata not expected.
  13. ***Some results have been released in the form of a journal publication [53].
  14. †††National Health Accounts for 2004/5 are being computed but the results not available at the time of writing this paper.
  15. ‡‡‡Regional estimates for 2004 were made available in 2008.
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