Raj govt launches reward of Rs 200 mobile recharge to MMR

In order to keep a check on Mother Mortality Rate (MMR), Rajasthan government has launched a reward of Rs 200 mobile recharge to the first informer of a mother's death at time of delivery across the state.
The reward was launched on May 1 after Rajasthan Principal Health Secretary directed all the district chief medical and health officers of the state in this regard on last week of previous month.
"The first person to inform authorities of the death of a pregnant woman, death of a woman during delivery or within 42 days of delivery would be rewarded with an incentive of Rs 200 worth mobile recharge in the district," Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) in Bundi district Suresh Jain said.

"Earlier, information about a considerable number of birth-related deaths of mothers were left unrecorded or uninformed to the Medical and Health department but now the incentive of mobile recharge would encourage even a common man to inform about such deaths to the department", CMHO added.
The move would help the department to analyze the reasons of Mother Mortality and it would also help check the same, he said.
Earlier, the medical staff at grass root levels sometimes avoid giving out information about the mother's death fearing departmental action, the officer added.

Meanwhile, National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) District Program Manager in Bundi Rajiv Lochan said that ten districts within the state, including Bundi, were declared high risk in view of Mother Mortality Rate (MMR) and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR).

According to the Lochan, both the rates were high in these districts as against the state average of MMR, that of 208 deaths over one lakh deliveries and IMR that of 48 deaths over 1000 births.
However, the Mother Mortality Rate (MMR) and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) in Bundi district between April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2015 was recorded as 222 and 65 respectively, an improvement from the previous year, he added.