The Covid-19 pandemic has not caused a baby boom, but quite the opposite in the city. Mumbai registered nearly 24% fewer births in 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019—the second year of the country's second most populous city recording a significant drop in birth registrations.

Given the persistent nutritional deprivation in children up to 5 years of age in tribal belts of the nation, this paper attempts to understand incidence and causes of