Aiming for a sharp reduction in Uttar Pradesh’s maternal mortality rate (MMR), the state transformation commission (STC) has prepared a new draft initiative to weed out ground-level challenges in safe delivery.
Shared under the draft concept of the ‘Mukhya Mantri Matritva Suraksha Yojna’, STC chief executive officer Manoj Singh said, “The idea is to improve access to quality healthcare during pregnancy and ensure delivery is safe for both mother and child. For this, linkages between the beneficiaries and centres that have the best facilities, such as medical colleges, will be improved. The prime focus is upon utilising facilities of medical colleges in the state.”
The plan has been designed to help UP match the MMR of states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala, which record less than 40 per lakh live births. Uttar Pradesh’s MMR is currently recorded at 141 per lakh live births, according to the Sample Registration System (SRS) data for 2021-23. The initiative incorporates lessons from maternal death incidents occurring at community and primary health centres across the state.
“The idea is to track pregnant women when she reaches the health centre, ensure all check-ups are done prior to delivery, and delivery takes place at a medical college,” Singh added.
A state-level ‘war room’ will be functional with the launch of the program. This facility will be part of the comprehensive planning for pregnant women and will specifically track high-risk pregnancies. Additionally, “Private hospitals will be categorised based upon capabilities and emergency care services,” Singh said. A meeting with identified private hospitals is slated for the first week of May.
State health data suggests hemorrhage alone accounts for nearly half of the maternal deaths. While the activation of first referral units (FRUs) has improved between 2017 and 2025, functional readiness remains uneven, especially regarding round-the-clock specialist availability, blood storage and transfusion services, and integrated transport systems.
UP’s health infrastructure currently includes 84 medical colleges (51 government), 221 district and special hospitals, 975 community health centres and 3,750 primary health centres, linked with 162,000 ASHA workers, 35,000 auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs), and 18,000 nurses. Of the total deliveries in the state, 60% are currently taking place at CHCs, 28% at district hospitals and 12% at lower-level facilities.
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