India Achieves National Health Policy Target for Maternal Mortality Ratio

India has successfully met the National Health Policy (NHP) 2017 target of reducing the Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) to 100 per lakh live births by 2020 and is on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of MMR 70 per lakh live births by 2030, Union Health Minister J P Nadda informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

Responding to a question, Nadda cited the latest Sample Registration System (SRS) data released by the Registrar General of India (RGI), which shows the country’s current MMR at 97 per lakh live births. He highlighted a significant decline of 33 points in MMR, from 130 in 2014-16 to 97 in 2018-20.

India's MMR has decreased by 83 percent, surpassing the global reduction rate of 42 percent. Similarly, the Under-Five Mortality Rate (U5MR) has dropped by 75 percent, outperforming the global decline of 58 percent.

To strengthen maternal healthcare, the Government of India launched the Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan (SUMAN) initiative in 2019. The program ensures dignified, respectful, and quality healthcare services at no cost, with zero tolerance for service denial. Public healthcare facilities are classified into Basic, BEmONC (Basic Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care), and CEmONC (Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care) centres to provide comprehensive maternal and newborn care.

To maintain healthcare quality, all notified facilities undergo National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. The initiative also includes a respectful maternity care component, offering birth companions of choice during childbirth and a client feedback system through 'Mera Aspataal' and a grievance redressal mechanism.

Additionally, the Midwifery training program is being implemented to train Nurse Practitioner Midwives (NPMs) to international standards. These professionals help ensure a positive birthing experience by promoting natural childbirth, alternative birthing positions, and minimizing medical interventions, particularly in high-caseload healthcare facilities.

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