Click to play videoNew Delhi: The infant mortality rate, the number of babies dying within the first year of life, has gone up in the Capital. In fact, the number has almost doubled in the past two years - a number which is a basic index of development.
According to the latest economic survey of Delhi, the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) has doubled in the past 2 years.
Delhi Health Minister, Dr Kiran Walia says, "Delhi has such an influx of people coming from outside and they are the ones who are under-nourished. They have not taken advantage of so many schemes floated by Delhi government."
Government welfare programmes like MAMTA and Integrated Child Development Facilities are aimed at lowering the infant mortality rate. MAMTA provides mothers free pre-natal check ups and ICDS makes sure mothers are well-nourished.
But there is a rider. Only women from reserved categories and those below the poverty line can benefit from these schemes as the urban poor women are excluded. The schemes also don't cover young mothers who are below 19 years of age.
Also, women with more than one child cannot avail of the scheme, which is illogical since it is a known fact that the chances of IMR are higher among mothers who have too many children too soon.
Then there is also the issue of residency.
Sociologist, Ramaswamy says, "The migrants who come to Delhi live in slums. They can't get any documents to prove their citizenship."
Every day hundreds of migrants pour into the city and make it their home. Most of them do not have documents to show their age, the number of children they have and their SC/ST status. How will these mothers register for government schemes and avail of better healthcare?
The Delhi government now plans to increase healthcare spending by 16 per cent, but perhaps, the effectiveness of the existing healthcare schemes needs to be reviewed first.
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter and Google+)
displayed with permission. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of CNN-IBN does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them.