NCW chief writes to health minister on plight of pregnant women amid COVID-19 crisis

National Commission for Women (NCW) Chairperson Rekha Sharma has written to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on the plight of pregnant women and alleged denial of treatment to them during the COVID-19 pandemic, reports ETV Bharat reporter Chandrakala Choudhury.

New Delhi:The National Commission for Women (NCW) has on Tuesday informed that it has written to the Union Minister of health and family welfare Harsh Vardhan apprising him of the plight of pregnant women and alleged denial of treatment to them during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the letter, NCW's chairperson Rekha Sharma said that it has come across many cases where non-availability of adequate ambulances for maternity services and denial of admission in hospitals led to delay in reaching the health facility whereas in some cases it has also resulted in the death of the mother and the newborn baby, according to a statement issued by the NCW.

"It is a matter of great concern and a note has been taken regarding the lapse on the part of hospitals and authorities in these crucial times", said Chairperson Rekha Sharma.

The statement said that the commission's chief mentioned that it had earlier written to all states/UTs regarding proper implementation of programmes and schemes for the institutional delivery mechanism to control maternal and infant mortality rate in India.

Moreover, the Commission has urged the Health Minister to intervene in the matter and has requested the Ministry to issue a direction to Health departments of every state/UT for ensuring non-COVID-19 ambulance services, allocation of separate beds for pregnant women and a dedicated helpline number to safeguard the health of women and their newborn babies.