Telangana at 'striking distance' from targeted MMR

HYDERABAD: Maintaining a steady decline in the maternal mortality rate (MMR)-the number of women dying during child birth per 1 lakh live births- Telangana has come at a ‘striking distance’ from reaching the targeted MMR. Telangana now has one of the lowest rate in the country, after Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
As per the latest sample registration system (SRS) report for the period 2015-2017, the MMR in Telangana was at 76, coming down from 81 during the previous survey and is inching close to the 70 mark- a sustainable development goal (SDG) set for the country.It had dropped from 92 to 81 during the period 2011-2013 and has further dropped to 76 between 2015-2017.
While Telangana has registered a 5 per cent decline from the previous survey, overall the country has registered a 26.9 per cent reduction in MMR since 2013, as per the latest sample registration system bulletin. State authorities have attributed the decline to the KCR kits scheme and strengthening of government hospitals.
Among the five southern states, Kerala (42), Tamil Nadu (63) and Andhra Pradesh (74) registered a lower MMR when compared to Telangana. Only Karnataka among the southern states registered a higher MMR at 97. Overall, the southern states registered an average MMR of 72.