Insufficient facilities hamper maternal and newborn health

Guwahati: As the world prepares to commemorate World Health Day on Monday with the theme ‘Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures', emphasising maternal and newborn health and ensuring institutional child delivery in challenging and inaccessible terrain, insufficient healthcare facilities remain the paramount challenge in Assam's hilly and riverine belt, officials said.
As per Union health and family welfare ministry's 2024-25 annual report, Assam is among states with low institutional delivery. However, it also highlighted Assam's position below national average in both infant mortality rate (IMR) and under-five mortality rate (U5MR). U5MR is the probability of a child dying before reaching the age of five, expressed per 1,000 live births.
Emphasising on Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY), a safe motherhood intervention under National Heath Mission, that is being implemented with the objective of reducing maternal and neonatal mortality by promoting institutional delivery among pregnant women, the report said the scheme has identified ASHAs as an effective link between govt and pregnant women. The centrally-sponsored scheme provides monetary assistance for delivery and post-delivery care and focuses on pregnant women with special dispensation for states that have low institutional delivery rates.
Assam featured in the list as the sole northeastern state categorised as Low Performing States (LPS).
"A collective effort is required from all govt departments and public to reduce Maternal Mortality Rate in difficult terrains of the state. In the hill districts and riverine areas, the health authorities are particularly concerned about insufficient institutional delivery," an official of the state health department told TOI.
While boat clinics and mobile medical units are offering services in riverine and tea belts, transporting pregnant women in the hilly terrain where no transport is available remains the foremost challenge, especially during rainy season.
The annual report has state-wise status of early-neonatal, neonatal, infant and child mortality rates, and notably Assam's Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and U5MR are higher than the national averages.