11 Haryana dists lag in child, maternal care

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 13

Eleven out of 22 districts in Haryana have been found lagging in child and maternal health care, as per data compiled by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).

As per the 2017-18 scorecard, which uses 16 indicators to calculate composite index on birth-control services, pregnancy care, child delivery and postnatal, maternal and newborn care, six districts were in “very low performance” category and five in “low performing” category. The report was released last month. The Union ministry annually brings out the scorecard evaluating districts in a state on the basis of infrastructure and child and maternal health care services.

Mewat, Palwal, Hisar, Bhiwani, Panipat and Faridabad districts ranked in “very low performance” category, while Sirsa, Rewari, Sonepat, Jind and Charkhi Dadri were in the “low performing” bracket.

Kurukshetra, Ambala, Kaithal, Jhajjar and Rohtak districts got the “good performance” tag. Yamunanagar, Mahendragarh, Fatehabad, Karnal, Gurugram and Panchkula were in the “promising” category.

Mewat was “very low performing” in pregnancy care, child birth, postnatal maternal and newborn care, while it was “promising” as regards birth-control services.

“The situation is terrible in Mewat. Health staff, both medical and paramedical, and health institutions are on lower side. No one wants to work there,” said Prof Aswini Kumar Nanda, from the Population Research Centre at the Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development, Chandigarh, who undertakes evaluation of health services in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan on behalf of the Union ministry.

Palwal was the second worst performer. Ranked “very low performing” in pregnancy care, child birth and birth-control services, it was “low performing” in postnatal maternal and newborn care. Kurukshetra was the best-performing district with “good performance” in pregnancy care; child birth and birth-control services, while in postnatal maternal and newborn care it was in “promising” category.

It was followed by Health Minister Anil Vij’s home district Ambala, which registered “good performance” on all parameters, except in postnatal maternal and newborn care where it ranked in the “promising” category.

Health Minister Anil Vij couldn’t be contacted for comments.

Worst performers

Faridabad
Panipat
Bhiwani
Hisar
Palwal
Mewat

Best performers

K’shetra
Ambala
Kaithal
Jhajjar
Rohtak