According to the United Nations, a mother dies every ten minutes in India which means that along with malnutrition caused by poverty, India is likely to miss the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) related to maternal health as well. One maternal death is reported every 10 minutes in India. India recorded around 57,000 maternal deaths in 2010, which translate into a whopping six every hour and one every 10 minutes, UN data in this regard says.
The current Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) of India is 212 per one lakh live births, whereas the country`s MDG in this respect is 109 per one lakh live births by 2015. “India is moving well on MMR. We have made progress in this regard. The MMR recorded a 38 per cent decline in maternal deaths between 1999 and 2009. There has been progress but we are not there just yet. The Government needs to ensure the availability of Auxiliary Nurses and Midwives closer to the homes of women who are delivering”, Frederika Meijer, India Representative for United Nations Population Fund said.
Meijer said almost 150 women were dying daily in India, as per 2010 data on maternal deaths. “This means one woman is dying every minute. The Government must work to address the issue of unmet need for contraception of women. They need to be counselled to space their children better,” Meijer said. Maternal deaths are defined as the number of women who die during pregnancy or within 42 days of the termination of pregnancy. India has reduced MMR significantly from 437 per one lakh live births in 1999 to 212 now, but needs to hasten the pace under National Rural Health Mission to achieve related MDG. The MDG Report 2012 points out that an estimated 287,000 maternal deaths occurred in 2010 worldwide. This represents a decline of 47 per cent from 1990 when the MDGs were set.
“Of the total maternal death burden worldwide, the sub- Saharan Africa accounts for 56 per cent and South Asia accounts for 29 per cent. Together the two regions made up for 85 per cent of the global maternal death burden in 2010″, states the Report released by noted economist Jayati Ghosh of Jawahar Lal Nehru University.
Also read: Why India is the worst place to be a mother
This kind of report is sickening – India is trying to show to world its technological progress.
One of the leading causes of maternal death is pre-eclampsia—the rapid elevation of blood pressure during pregnancy— World Health Organization recognizes and recommends injectable magnesium sulfate—also known as Epsom salts—as the safest, most effective, and lowest-cost medication for treating pre-eclampsia and eclampsia. So why is this cheap EPSOM salt not available for these pregnant mothers! Take Care. Mikey