Have you ever wondered why child death (IMR) and mother death (MMR) are going down so slowly in India? Part of the answer can be found in a recent survey report put out by the Census office. The eight, most poor states where this survey was done are home to half the country’s population. And, it is in these states that 71% of infant deaths, 72% of deaths of children under-5 years, and 62% of maternal deaths take place. Here are some key reasons why mothers’ die because of pregnancy and child birth related complications. More than three quarters of pregnant women in any of these states don’t get the full ante-natal checkup (ANC) that they are supposed to get while carrying the baby.

A full checkup means at least one checkup every three months (three in all), one tetanus injection and iron supplement for at least 100 days. In UP, Bihar and Rajasthan, over 90% women did not get the full ANC. So, the foundation for something going wrong at delivery time is laid. A very large proportion of mothers did not get a checkup within 48 hours of delivery. They could be suffering from bleeding or infections and the risk is highest in this time. In Odisha this proportion was low at 17% but it went up to nearly 40% in Bihar.

Click Here To read More