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A Demographic Study of Mirpur: A Village in Coastal Midnapore District, West Bengal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 July 2008

Amitabha Basu ,
Ranjan Gupta  and
Kalyan K. Bhattacharya
Amitabha Basu
Affiliation:
Anthropometry and Human Genetics Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta
Ranjan Gupta
Affiliation:
Anthropometry and Human Genetics Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta
Kalyan K. Bhattacharya
Affiliation:
Biochemistry Section, Anthropological Survey of India, Calcutta
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Summary

Mirpur is a small village of 320 individuals in coastal Midnapore district, West Bengal, the inhabitants of which claim partial Portuguese ancestry. The demographic data collected in Mirpur are reported here. The age structure of the population suggests a growing population trend, but a constriction at the base of the pyramid indicates a recent decline of fertility. The completed family size, net reproductive index and total fertility rate are also compatible with high growth rate, but the age-specific fertility rates are lower in the younger than in the older women. The infant mortality rate is low in general, and is lower in the offspring of the younger women. The Mirpurians suffer from protein-calorie malnutrition and heavy intestinal parasitic load. The possible relationships among high fertility, malnutrition and high parasitic load are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 12 , Issue 2 , April 1980 , pp. 227 - 234
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1980

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