Mumbai:
A shocking survey in Mumbai has highlighted the alarming rise in the number of
death's during childbirth. That's in sharp contrast to the all India trend that has shown a decline in last few years.
Hard to believe, yet in the heart of Mumbai last year over 200 women died at childbirth beating the figure of 154 last year. This shows how maternal mortality in the city is rising at an alarming pace each year.
At the Rafique and Shivaji nagar slum colonies in Govandi that has posted many of these deaths it's not hard to see why.
Five lakh people live here; yet there is not a single dispensary or maternity hospital in the area.
When NDTV visited the homes of some of the victims we found children who were too young to comprehend what had happened to their mothers, but the family of Amina, one of the woman who died last December told us that she bled to death while delivering the baby at home.
The closest civic hospital is an hour's journey and does not have emergency delivery facilities.
Leaving women like Shakira with little choice but to turn to local midwives, putting themselves at huge risk.
''When it was time for my son to be born, I had no money to take an auto to the hospital. Also once you are admitted, you have to arrange for medicines. I am very poor. How could I have bought injections worth Rs 3000?'' said Shakira Mohammed.
Civic hospitals are supposed to provide medicines free to pregnant women.
In reality, they are poorly stocked.
''Even when the women register at maternity centres, there are not enough medicines or iron and folic acid available. All tests, including even a basic sonography, have to be done outside. When they go for the delivery, they are told to spend at least Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 on medicines and other basic supplies," said Gyaneshwar Tarwade, Assistant Director, NGO, Apnalaya.
Warned by the rise in figures the civic body has set up a special committee to investigate the reasons.
All civic hospitals have also been asked to account for the maternal deaths in their records.
A pointless exercise since most of the deaths occur at homes and the reasons embarrassingly easy to spot.
death's during childbirth. That's in sharp contrast to the all India trend that has shown a decline in last few years.
Hard to believe, yet in the heart of Mumbai last year over 200 women died at childbirth beating the figure of 154 last year. This shows how maternal mortality in the city is rising at an alarming pace each year.
At the Rafique and Shivaji nagar slum colonies in Govandi that has posted many of these deaths it's not hard to see why.
Five lakh people live here; yet there is not a single dispensary or maternity hospital in the area.
When NDTV visited the homes of some of the victims we found children who were too young to comprehend what had happened to their mothers, but the family of Amina, one of the woman who died last December told us that she bled to death while delivering the baby at home.
The closest civic hospital is an hour's journey and does not have emergency delivery facilities.
Leaving women like Shakira with little choice but to turn to local midwives, putting themselves at huge risk.
''When it was time for my son to be born, I had no money to take an auto to the hospital. Also once you are admitted, you have to arrange for medicines. I am very poor. How could I have bought injections worth Rs 3000?'' said Shakira Mohammed.
Civic hospitals are supposed to provide medicines free to pregnant women.
In reality, they are poorly stocked.
''Even when the women register at maternity centres, there are not enough medicines or iron and folic acid available. All tests, including even a basic sonography, have to be done outside. When they go for the delivery, they are told to spend at least Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 on medicines and other basic supplies," said Gyaneshwar Tarwade, Assistant Director, NGO, Apnalaya.
Warned by the rise in figures the civic body has set up a special committee to investigate the reasons.
All civic hospitals have also been asked to account for the maternal deaths in their records.
A pointless exercise since most of the deaths occur at homes and the reasons embarrassingly easy to spot.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
