India is a signatory to the Alma Ata declaration and has committed herself to achieving "Health for All by the Year 2000". Since then, a lot of planning, effort and public expenditure has been devoted to improving the health of the people both in rural and urban areas of the country.

Breast-feeding is the proud privilege of every mother. It gives her an opportunity to fondle her little one with tender care and looks forward to his growth and development with high expectations.

In recent years, there has been increased recognition of the scope and significance of gynaecological problems experienced by poor women in developing countries.

Acceptance and sustained use of family planning especially of modern spacing methods have generally been low in developing countries particularly in India. The use rate for modern spacing methods was only 6 per cent among the eligible couples in India in 1992 (IIPS, 1995).

Medical and public health experts advocate breastfeeding as the best method of feeding young infants for a wide variety of reasons.

The practice of breast-feeding is almost universal in India. Protecting, promoting and supporting breast-feed in should be the foremost aim of all the communities. Compare the body of a lactating mother to a baby food factory and we find that she is far and away the most efficient [1].

Breast-feeding has its socioeconomic, psychological, biological and immunological aspects. Human milk is known to be an ideal, safe and complete food for infants and being available at a suitable temperature, it helps promote normal dental and facial development.