Madhya Pradesh recorded a fall of 18.6% in institutional deliveries in April, the first month of the COVID-19 lockdown, casting a shadow on an improving trend, National Health Mission (NHM) data show.
Private and government-run health centres recorded 97,881 births in April 2019, around 18.1% more than the previous year. However, the count dipped to 79,619 in the corresponding month this year, the Health Management Information System, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare data showed. Institutional deliveries shot up to 90% in 2019, and were growing by 2-3% each year.
Diversion of health infrastructure for the pandemic, including accredited social health activists and auxiliary nurse midwives, and the 108 ambulance service, and disrupted transport network c