New programme will be announced to curb cesarean deliveries: Karnataka Health Minister

Belagavi (Karnataka): Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said on Monday that a new programme will be launched next month to control caesarean deliveries in the state.

Responding to a question raised by MLC Jagdeva Guttedar in the Legislative Council, the Minister acknowledged that the rate of cesarean deliveries in the state has been increasing annually.

“… the caesarean delivery rate, which was 35 per cent in 2021-2022, increased to 38 per cent in 2022-23. Currently, the caesarean rate in the state is 46 per cent. We have taken this seriously and are taking measures to control them,” Rao said.

He noted that in private hospitals, over 61 per cent of deliveries are caesarean, driven by the fact that caesarean sections generate more income and are easier to perform.

“It is essential to curb this for the health of both the mother and the child. Women need to be mentally and physically prepared for a natural birth. We are formulating a new programme, which will be announced next month. Some private hospitals are performing up to 80-90 per cent caesarean deliveries,” he added.

Rao, responding to another question, said eight cases have been registered in the state since 2023-24, and 46 people have been arrested in connection with foeticide.

A large number of foeticide cases have been detected due to increased inspections of scanning centers and hospitals in the state. Action is being taken against those involved in foeticide through successful decoy operations, he said.

To prevent foeticide in the state, the government has established all statutory committees under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act at the state and district levels, the Minister said. Since 2018, all scanning centers in the state have been required to register and renew through the ‘Balika’ software.

He said that 100 per cent registration of pregnant women is underway at the state level, and information technology is being used to monitor sex ratio data at the village level.

Pointing out that 136 cases have been registered in the state against scanning centers, owners, or doctors for violating the PCPNDT Act, Rao said 74 persons have been fined and acquitted, while 65 cases are still pending in court at various stages.

He said the Karnataka government has increased the reward for informers who provide information about scanning centers, hospitals, doctors, brokers, or relatives involved in detecting and killing female foetuses, helping in filing a case, from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.