An Assessment of the Public Health Inequalities in Purulia District of West Bengal

The health condition of population is inherently linked with a variety of factors related to society, economy and policies. In the present study the life curve and the life expectancy are primarily considered for the analysis of spatial and non-spatial inequality of health. The difference of health condition between higher and lower economic strata has been examined and the backwardness of the tribal communities in terms of health status is also studied. The study considers the district of Purulia, the western-most district in the state of West Bengal as the study area. The said district is lagged behind in terms of human development as reported by different public and public agencies as well as researches carried out by scholars. It encourages the present study to examine the extent of inequality in health status within the district. The present investigation may contribute to the future policy formulations relating to human development by supplying a basic level of information regarding „backward‟ and „well-off‟ sectors of public health status in the district.