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Quality health services to help India achieve MMR below 70: Unicef

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New Delhi, June 9 (IANS) India registered a major decline of 22 per cent in Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) to 130, but to reach the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of less than 70, the focus has to be on timely access to quality health services, Unicef India said on Saturday.

“India has shown impressive progress in reducing maternal deaths. But more effort is needed to reach the SDG target. The focus should be on improving access to health services, timely support and quality of services,” Unicef Representative in India Yasmin Ali Haque said.

According to a special bulletin on ‘Maternal Mortality in India 2014-16’ by Sample Registration System (SRS), the MMR in India fell to 130 in 2014-16 from 167 in 2011-13 with three states Kerala (46), Maharashtra (61) and Tamil Nadu (66) already achieving the SDG target.

“Two more states, Andhra Pradesh (74) and Telangana (81), are at striking distance. They have reduced poverty, improved health services, are better sensitized to women issues and the overall functioning of schemes is better. Lot of lessons can be learnt from here,” she said.

Haque said the country has to focus on what is not working. If 80 per cent of women are availing institutional delivery, what is preventing the rest of the 20 per cent. Education of girls has a role and needs to be addressed but more important is the availability of health services.

“The figure of institutional delivery in states with large tribal population and marginalised groups like Dalits is about 60 to 65 per cent. We have to dig deeper to find solutions here to improve access like maternity waiting house for women from remote areas to come before delivery date.

“But more important is the quality of health services and the behavioural aspect whether the pregnant woman is treated with dignity, respect and has her privacy. Then there are other administrative issues like availability of trained personnel particularly in rural areas,” said Haque.

As for the major reasons for success, Unicef India Chief of Health Gagan Gupta said, “These are strengthened financial and human resources of National Health Mission (NHM), empowering of community health workers and introduction of cash transfer incentive for institutional delivery.”

Other reasons are Mission Indradhanush, free ambulance services and Lakshya initiative, which aims to prevent undesirable adverse outcomes in institutional deliveries by ensuring proper implementation of the existing labour room protocols.

The SRS bulletin had also noted that the most significant decline was among the Empowered Action Group (EAG) states and Assam from 246 to 188. EAG states comprise of Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Among the Southern States, which comprise of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the decline has been from 93 to 77 and in the Other States, covering remaining states and Union Territories, the fall in MMR has been from 115 to 93, as per the bulletin.

There were nearly 12,000 fewer maternal deaths in 2016 as compared to 2013, with total number of maternal deaths for the first time reducing to 32,000. With this, India has gone beyond the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of MMR of 139 by 2015 and has reached 130.

–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma

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World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.

Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.

During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.

On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”

Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.

It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.

Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.

Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”

On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”

The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.

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