Spousal violence against married women drops in Bihar: NFHS-6

Patna: The latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) data reveals a promising decline in spousal violence against married women (aged 18-49 years) in Bihar. However, despite this progress, the prevalence remains exceptionally high, positioning Bihar among the most challenging regions for women’s domestic safety in India.

According to the latest NFHS-6 fact sheets released Friday, 36.1% of married women in Bihar reported experiencing spousal violence. This marks a notable improvement of 4 percentage points from the 40.1% recorded during the NFHS-5 (2019-21) survey. State authorities attribute this steady contraction to localised female empowerment schemes, education, increased digital inclusion, and stricter institutional vigilance.

While the dip reflects a positive trajectory for Bihar, the state’s numbers paint a sobering picture when placed against the pan-India landscape. The NFHS-6 national average for married women experiencing partner-led abuse stands at 22.3% — a steep reduction from 29.2% in NFHS-5. Bihar’s prevalence rate of 36.1% sits a staggering 13.8 percentage points higher than the national baseline, highlighting a persistent regional crisis in gender-based safety.

Social activists and health experts note that deep-rooted patriarchal structures, economic dependence, and substance abuse continue to block faster recovery.

“The 4% reduction shows that our grassroots interventions and women’s self-help groups are creating an impact,” stated an official of the state’s social welfare department. “However, the massive gap between Bihar and the rest of India means we need aggressive social reform, better legal aid accessibility, and economic safeguards for rural housewives,” he said.

Similarly, gender rights activists stress that the statistics might show only a fraction of the reality. “While a lower percentage is a step forward, under reporting remains an issue,” claimed Sunita Mishra, a researcher at a Darbhanga-based women’s rights organisation. “We must ensure that women who have survived spousal violence are not left to suffer in silence, but they should have the institutional backing to seek immediate help,” she added.