Title: Dynamics of caste and early childbearing in India: A perspective of three decades
Version: 0 Date: 19 Dec 2023
Reviewer:  Venkatraman Chandra-Mouli
Reviewer's report:
Feedback to BMC Women’s Health
Dynamics of social groups and early childbearing in India: A perspective of three decades.
Overall comments:
The fact that there are differences between women in the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes
and other backward castes, when compared to women who do not belong to these categories is
now new. The real news is that the differences are rapidly decreasing. For example, from the
results presented, the differentials have decreased between women in the SC, ST and OBC group
and women in the general category. From the data presented the former have made enormous
progress over time and the differentials are much less. There are more differences between the
states.
From my knowledge of the literature both globally and from India, there is growing evidence
that multiple layers of factors i.e., intersectional vulnerability increase the likelihood of child
marriage and of other negative health and social outcomes.
In other words, the case that the authors are making is weak and not in line with how the global
thinking has evolved.
Beyond that, the paper is poorly written, with outdated references and sloppy/incomplete
referencing.
Specific comments:
Page 1
No comments.
Page 2
Background:
The sentence: ‘Early age at….among young females’ contains a long apple-pear mix of issues.
My sense is that not all contribute at the same level, and not all contribute directly. It would be
useful to provide some categories, and to distinguish the items for which there is evidence of
contribution, and not just association.
Results:
Are the authors suggesting that all SC and OBS have the same level of vulnerability. It would
be helpful to include some nuance on the intersectional vulnerabilities.
Page 3
Background:
Para 1:
Line 8: Please could you check if reference 6 is appropriate in this context.
Last line: Reference 10 is a study protocol and is not appropriate in this context.
Lines 5-7: The sentence: ‘The rates of ….and castes.’ contains a long apple-pear mix of issues.
My sense is that not all contribute at the same level, and not all contribute directly. It would be
useful to provide some categories, and to distinguish the items for which there is evidence of
contribution, and not just association.
Para 2:
Line 4: Please provide a chapter/page number of reference 11.
Page 4
Para 1:
Line 2: Reference 25 is incomplete.
Line 4: Reference 27 is incomplete.
Para 2:
Line 4: Reference 28 is not really a reference. Please provide authentic references to government
websites of the initiatives.
Last para:
Last line: Reference 32 is 30 years old. Please consider using a more up to date reference to
make the important point you seeking to make.
Page 5
Statistical analysis:
5th line: Please consider explaining how the weighting was done.
Results
Trends of early childbearing by caste/social group
From the data presented the strongest decline was in the SC and ST group, and there is very little
difference between them and the general caste group. Did you do any statistics test to check this ?
Socio-economic diffential in early childbearing:
Again, I see very little difference between the rates in the SC/ST group and the non SC/ST/OBC
group. Again, did you do any statistis tests ?
Page 6
Determinants of early childbearing:
The differentials have been there for decades and are declining markedly. So, what is new here ?
Discussion:
Para 2:
Line 2:
Reference 34 is undated.
As noted above, these differentials were there for a long time but have declined now.
Para 3:
Again, we know that these differences are there. The good news is that they are declining e.g.,
literacy levels in SC have gone from 25% in 1992-93 to 90% in 2019-21 and are not so different
from women in the general caste category. For me, that is news, not that some differentials
persist.
Last line: Reference 36 is 20 years old. It would be useful to complement seasoned references
with updated ones in a paper which is communicating new developments.
Page 7
Second to last para in the discussion section:
Sixth line from the bottom: The authors have cited reference 43 to point to recommendations
of promising interventions. This reference was published in 2016. There are many more recent
and evidence/experience informed publications.
Last three lines from the bottom: References 44 and 45 are incomplete.
Page 8
No comments.