We analyse the efficiency of India’s health system by assessing input excesses and output shortfalls, specifically focusing on government health expenditure, health personnel, and public hospital against the infant survival rate as output. Using time-series data from 2014-15 to 2019-20 of 21 states, our non-radial, non-oriented, Slack-Based Measure Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model yields an average efficiency score of 84%, highlighting significant potential for improvement. Bihar showed efficiency despite resource constraints, while Himachal Pradesh remained inefficient. These findings suggest reallocating resources to health services in underperforming states and encourage collaboration with the private sector in states like Kerala and West Bengal, which have higher private expenditure. This study uniquely employs slack-based DEA to compare India’s health system during the specified period.