Bihar govt mulls measures to check girl child mortality rate

Concerned over increase in girl child mortality, the Bihar government today said it was contemplating several measures to motivate parents to provide good health care to new born girl child.
In a bid to motivate parents particularly of poor section of the society, the state government is contemplating to compensate them for wage loss so that they could take their newly born girl child for proper health care after birth, Health minister Tej Pratap Yadav said replying to a short notice question of BJP Tarkishore Prasad in state Assembly.
Yadav further said that the government is also working out to provide incentive money to ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers to motivate them to take newly born girl child for proper medicare.

The minister admitted that girl child mortality rate has increased by 17 per cent in the past three years in the state.
Giving details, he said a total of 36 Special New Born Care Unit is working in Bihar at present and 6 more would be coming soon.
In addition, 550 New Born centres are functioning across the state where medicare is provided, he added.
The minister said that "Beti Rakshak Rath" which was flagged off by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar recently is spreading awareness among people particularly in rural areas for maintaining good sex ratio in the state.