Karnataka’s Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) has declined by six points from 69 per lakh live births in 2018-20 to 63 in 2019-21, indicating that the number of women dying during childbirth has come down significantly.
Although the decline rate is less than half of what was achieved in 2018-20 — when MMR had reduced by 14 points from 83 per lakh live births in 2017-18 to 69 in 2018-20 — Karnataka is one of the eight States in the country that has achieved the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target much ahead of schedule. In terms of percentage, the State’s MMR has dropped by 8.7%.
The United Nations had set the SDG target of reaching an MMR of 70 per lakh live births by 2030. This target had been fixed as a mark of improved health outcomes for the developing world. The MMR is a significant indicator that defines the public health of a State. It determines the progress made by States in saving the lives of women during pregnancy, childbirth, and lactation.
Karnataka’s MMR has been declining since 2016. It had reduced by nine points from 92 per lakh live births in 2016–18 to 83 in 2017–19, during the pre-COVID-19 period. In 2014–16, the State’s MMR was 108, and it reduced to 97 in 2015–17. Officials said the lesser decline in 2019-21 could be because of the pandemic.
Highest among southern States
According to the latest Sample Registration System 2019–21 bulletin for the MMR released by the Registrar-General of India on Wednesday (May 7, 2025), Karnataka’s MMR continues to be the highest among the five southern States.
However, the six-point decline in Karnataka is also the highest, followed by Tamil Nadu, where the MMR has reduced by five points. Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Kerala have shown a reverse trend with an increase in MMR by one or two points.
Despite the increase, Kerala tops the list with the lowest MMR at 20 per lakh live births, followed by Maharashtra at 38 per lakh live births. Madhya Pradesh has the highest MMR at 175 per lakh live births.
While Assam has recorded the highest decline in the MMR by 28 points, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh follow by 18 and 16 points, respectively. Overall, seven States have shown an increase in the MMR with the highest increase of five points in Maharashtra.
Collective effort
Attributing the decline in the MMR to the collective efforts of health workers who have created awareness on institutional deliveries, Rajkumar N., State Deputy Director (Maternal Health), said that apart from consistent political commitment, improved governance and accountability system had helped achieve this.
“According to the Civil Registration System (CRS), Karnataka’s current MMR stands at about 57, and we have an ambitious goal to reduce maternal deaths further to 45 by the end of the current fiscal year,” he said.
Harsh Gupta, Principal Secretary (Health and Family Welfare), told The Hindu that Karnataka’s progress underscores the critical role of strategic investments and policy focus in improving maternal outcomes.
After the Ballari scare
“Following the Ballari maternal deaths in November last year, we launched a ‘Mission Zero Preventable Deaths’ initiative. This involves a comprehensive strategy, including upgrading mother and child hospitals to improve service delivery, rationalising human resources for taluk-level hospitals, capacity building and skill enhancement of healthcare providers. Besides, improving maternal nutrition through coordinated efforts between multiple departments is also part of this initiative,” he said.
“We are on a positive trend, and we will continue with the same momentum. We are working on filling the policy-level gaps and we require the support of all field workers, doctors, and the general public for this,” he said.
What audit report said
Following a sudden spurt in maternal deaths in Ballari last year, a government-constituted technical team of health experts — which audited 464 maternal deaths that occurred between April and December 2024 — found that 70% of the maternal deaths in Karnataka could have been prevented. While 65% (305) of these deaths occurred in public health facilities, 22% (103) of them occurred in private hospitals. A significant number of the deaths (380, i.e. 82%) occurred between the time of childbirth and 42 days after delivery.
According to the interim maternal death audit report submitted to the government, the deaths could have been prevented if correct decisions were made at the right time regarding the treatment plans adopted at the facility level for risk factors such as anaemia, hypertensive disorders, gestational diabetes, and such conditions that develop during pregnancy.
Published – May 09, 2025 07:19 am IST
Tyisha Schewe
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