THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s latest electoral pitch—a claim that the state’s Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) has plummeted to an unprecedented five per 1,000 live births—has sent shockwaves, with critics suggesting even US President Donald Trump must be taking notes.
The staggering claim positions Kerala not just as the best in India, far surpassing the national average of 25, but also as superior to the mighty United States, which records an IMR of 5.6. According to the Chief Minister’s thallu (boast), Kerala has achieved a health milestone surpassing one of the world’s most developed nations.
The Attappady Reality Check
However, the CM’s world-beating statistics are facing immediate and severe scrutiny from opposition and community groups, who point to a starkly different on-ground reality in some of the state’s most vulnerable regions.
The spotlight is now on Attappady, a tribal block in Palakkad, which recorded at least 13 tribal infant deaths in the first 10 months of 2022 alone. This tragic count included three children under the age of two, four stillbirths, and 12 reported abortions, according to available data. Tribal organizations have consistently maintained that the number of deaths is even higher than the official figures suggest, indicating a clear discrepancy that undermines the statewide average claim.
“It’s clear that the Infant Mortality Rate is much higher than what is officially recorded. To boast about figures being lower than the US while our tribal children are dying is a cruel joke,” remarked a political analyst.
Election Time ‘Over-Boasting’
The CM’s statement has become a talking point, with many questioning the timing and magnitude of the ‘boast’ ahead of the upcoming elections. The general sentiment among critics is that the rhetoric has reached peak absurdity, with one politician sarcastically suggesting the CM will soon announce that President Trump himself is planning a visit to Thiruvananthapuram to “study Kerala’s model” and personally meet Pinarayi Vijayan.
