Local experts claimed lack of government outreach programmes such as Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana and institutional delivery have led to high neonatal mortality.
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Mumbai: According to a reply to a Right to Information plea filed by activist Chetan Kothari, 1,768 children aged less than five had died in 2018-19 in Mumbai — a five per cent rise from 1,672 in 2017-18, Indian Express reported.
Local experts claimed lack of government outreach programmes such as Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana and institutional delivery have led to high neonatal mortality.
Even though Maharashtra has recorded a slight drop in infant and child deaths between 2017-18 to 2018-19, in 2018-19, at least 449 children had died within 24 hours of delivery in the city, accounting for maximum deaths in neonates (newborns).
In all, 814 had died within a month of birth, indicating the lack of intensive care support for neonates in the city. In the state’s largest government hospital, JJ hospital, for instance, data shows that of the 83 ventilators, over 15 per cent lie defunct, the report said.
“In BMC hospitals, facilities for neonatal care are not enough for a large number of admissions. Staff strength remains insufficient,” said Kothari in the report.
“In a lot of cases, asphyxia or congenital malformation can lead to death within hours of birth. Deaths due to infection are highest within days of delivery. We are seeing more premature births now due to the rise in IVF procedures that also increases risk,” said neonatologist Dr Bhupendra Awasthi in the report.
Across Maharashtra, infant deaths dropped marginally by 0.65 per cent from 15,314 deaths recorded in 2018-19. Efforts made by the state government in Palghar to improve maternal nutrition and care also saw the number of deaths reduce by almost half.
In 2017-18, there were 326 deaths, which reduced to 188 in 2018-19.
Infant deaths in Nandurbar, the northern tribal belt of Maharashtra, however, rose by 11 per cent to 663 in 2018-19.