Of an estimated 3,95,072 babies born all over the world on the first day of New Year this time, India accounted for almost 18% of them. India, which is the second most populous country in the world, is estimated to have added 39,994 newborns to its population on January 1, 2019.
This data was provided by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), which said, “In cities around the world, revellers will welcome not only the New Year with great festivities but also their newest and tiniest residents.” While the first baby was of 2019 expected to be born in Fiji, the last was in the United States.
According to UNICEF’s estimates, India figures right at the top of eight countries which accounted for 50% of all newborns born globally, beating China, the world’s most populous country, to second place. The breakdown is as follows.
1. India — 69,944
2. China — 44,940
3. Nigeria — 25,685
4. Pakistan — 15,112
5. Indonesia — 13,256
6. The United States of America — 11,086
7. The Democratic Republic of Congo — 10,053
8. Bangladesh — 8,428
While releasing this data, UNICEF drew attention to infant mortality rates as well. “Around the world on January 1, families will welcome countless Alexanders and Ayeshas, Zixuans and Zainabs. But in several countries, many babies will not even be named as they won’t make it past their first day.”
Pointing out that about a million babies breathed their last the same day they were born in 2017, around 2.5 million infants just made it to the first month. Most of these children succumbed to preventable causes like premature birth, complications during delivery and illnesses like sepsis and pneumonia, which UNICEF said, was a violation of their basic right to survival.