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Kerala has achieved to bring its infant mortality rate (IMR) — per 1,000 live births — down to six, equalling the IMR rate of the US. According to the fourth edition of the National Family Health Survey conducted in 2014-15, India’s national average IMR fell sharply from 57 to 41. The survey, released after a decade, also pegs Kerala’s under-five mortality rate (U5MR) at 7, down from 16, while the national average is 50, down from 74.

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Kerala’s new record has left the southern state way ahead of other states in the country. Tamil Nadu, with an IMR of 12, comes second, followed by . Kerala has beaten countries like Russia (eight), China (nine), Sri Lanka (eight) and Brazil (15), reports Times of India.

National Family Health Surveys; NFHS 1 (1992-93), NFHS 2 (1998-99), NFHS 3 (2005-05) and NFHS 4 (2015-16) National Family Health Surveys; NFHS 1 (1992-93), NFHS 2 (1998-99), NFHS 3 (2005-05) and NFHS 4 (2015-16)

While the figures give reason to celebrate, pediatricians and public health experts remain skeptical of the sharp decrease in numbers. While they believe that the number isn’t impossible, they wonder whether the number of infants in Kerala’s overall NFHS sample was adequate to measure the accurate IMR rate, reports Times of India.

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