In India, a world record for those born on New Year's Day: over 67 thousand children

Worldwide more than 390 thousand births.  The second country is China, with over 46 thousand babies.  In Delhi, several pregnant women have scheduled the birth for January 1, as a sign of "good luck".  Still too many premature deaths: in 2018 at least 2.5 million children have not reached one year of life.

New Delhi (AsiaNews / Agencies) - India holds the world record of births on the first day of the year: at least 67,385 children saw the light yesterday.  This was reported by a UNICEF study, which every year draws up the forecasts of the countries with the highest number of newborns.  In total, in the world the number of children who came into the world on New Year's Eve is just over 392 thousand, of which 17% in India.

Following the Indian subcontinent is China with 46,299 newborns;  Nigeria (26,039), Pakistan (16,787), Indonesia (13,020) and the United States (10,452) follow.  According to Unicef, the first birth took place in the Fiji islands, shortly after midnight, while the last in the United States.

In the capital of the Union, several hospital wards welcomed the first born in 2020. A doctor from Delhi reports that many mothers "have chosen to schedule cesarean section because they wanted their child to be born the first of the year.  The reason is because they believe it is a good luck to welcome their bundle of joy into a new year. "

Together with the ranking of births, the United Nations agency also publishes the data of those who did not survive in the first months of life: in 2018 there were at least 2.5 million infant deaths, of which a third in the hours following birth.  Although significant progress has been made in the medical field in recent years, experts point out that still too many babies die in the first month of life, that is, about 47% of babies within five years.

The most common causes are complications at the time of delivery, neonatal infections and pregnancies with premature births.  For Henrietta Fore, UNICEF executive director, "too many mothers and babies are not treated by trained nurses and midwives.  We could ensure the survival of millions of children in this decade and beyond, if each of them was birthed by expert hands. "

• india
• record
• births
• new year
• 1st january
• born
• children
• infant deaths
• unicef