Infant mortality has come down: Minister

In his address, the Minister said, “Tamil Nadu is credited with introduction of several pioneering schemes at the State level such as Dr Muthulakshmi Reddy Maternity Benefit Scheme, Birth Companion Programme, Amma Baby Care Kit and Amma Nutrition Kit. Easy access to the CEmONC and NICU centers have been pivotal to the improvement in Maternal and Child Health indicators.”

In the State, 126 CEmONC Centres, 72 NICU centres, 114 NBSU, and 2285 NBCC have been functioning effectively. As a result, neonatal mortality rate has been brought down to 11 per 1,000 and infant mortality rate to 16 per 1,000, which are well below the national average, Vijaya Baskar added. The conference was organised by Indian Academy of Pediatrics and witnessed at least 100 speakers from all over the country and more than 1,200 participants who participated in discussions on bringing down national mortality rate, infant mortality rate and other topics related to pediatric health.