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Two more new mothers die at Bhilwara hospital, seven in July
Two new mothers died at Mahatma Gandhi Hospital in Bhilwara, Rajasthan, on Wednesday night, taking the number of maternal deaths at the district's largest government hospital to seven in July. Both women…
The Story in Brief
Two new mothers died at Mahatma Gandhi Hospital in Bhilwara, Rajasthan, on Wednesday night, taking the number of maternal deaths at the district's largest government hospital to seven in July. Both women had normal deliveries and were not classified as high-risk, but succumbed to severe postpartum bleeding. The deaths follow a series of maternal health incidents across the state, including five deaths in Kota in May and two in Bikaner in June.
In a separate case, 26-year-old Rachna from Alwar died after a 48-hour ordeal across four hospitals last month. The Times of India reports that despite improved maternal healthcare indicators, women in rural areas continue to face delays due to lack of nearby hospitals, specialist care, ambulance availability and transport connectivity. In Maharashtra, a woman died in June because an ambulance could not reach her village due to poor roads.
The Indian Opinion
The narrative that only rural women with poor access die in childbirth misses the point. At Bhilwara, both women were in a city hospital, had normal deliveries, and were not high-risk, yet they bled to death. A screening drive found 23% of pregnant women in the district are high-risk, but the deaths are among those not flagged. The real test is not the antenatal register but the speed of emergency response. When a woman's haemoglobin drops from 10 to 1.8 g/dL, how many minutes does it take to get blood and a surgeon?
Sources (2): timesofindia.indiatimes.com, thehansindia.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
