Inequalities in the Utilization of Recommended Antenatal Care in india: Further Analyses of the Poor–non-Poor Divide

The present research tries to explore unequal access to recommended antenatal care (RANC) among groups and subgroups, especially between poor and non-poor mothers in India. This study used data from the National Family Health Survey 2019-2021. Early initiation for antenatal care (ANC), husband's presence during ANC, pregnancy complications, exposure to mass media, birth interval, and pregnancy wantedness were factors affecting the utilization of RANC. Mothers who were educated, belonged to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and General social group, were Christian and Sikh, resided in urban areas, were non-poor, and were located in western and southern regions had a significantly higher likelihood of receiving the RANC. The lowest RANC levels were found in the central region, regardless of caste or place of residence. Compared to the other regions, mothers who were poor from the western and southern regions had higher odds of receiving the RANC in their category of poor and even larger odds than women in non-poor categories from various regions. The decomposition analyses revealed that the largest factor explaining the poor and non-poor gaps in utilization of RANC was the region, followed by mothers' education, mothers' exposure to mass media, and place of residence.