Himachal Pradesh has failed to provide 24-hour maternal healthcare facilities at 84 per cent of its primary health centres, mainly in rural areas, under the National Rural Health Mission, the Comptroller Auditor General of India has said.
Of the 500 primary health centres, only 81 (16 per cent) have been upgraded to provide round-the-clock delivery services but none of these had basic obstetric and nursing facilities like availability of a gynaecologist, staff nurses and skilled birth attendants, according to a CAG report.
It said under the NHRM framework (2005-12), the government of India had launched a strategy to make emergency maternal healthcare services like safe deliveries round the clock in rural areas.
It said out of the 500 primary health centres, labour rooms were not available in 308 and new born care units in 493.
Painting a darker picture of promoting institutional deliveries, the national auditor said it has decreased to 57 per cent in 2014-15 from 42 in 2010-11.
During 2010-15, a total of 668,442 pregnant women were registered in the State.
Only 354,022 (53 per cent) institutional deliveries were ensured in government institutions against the targeted deliveries of 467,909 (70 per cent).
Under the Janani Suraksha Yojana introduced in 2005-06, 70 per cent of the deliveries were to be ensured in government health institutions by 2012. - IANS
