There were 390 maternal deaths per 1,00,000 live births in Assam between 2007 and 2009. The Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) was much higher 480 during 2004-06 in the state. While there has been an improvement,theres a long way to go before the country is able to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of 109 by 2015. As per the Sample Registration System,Indias MMR,which measures the number of women aged between 15 and 49 dying during childbirth per 1,00,000 live births,stands at 212 in 2007-09. It was 254 in 2004-06. The Infant Mortality Rate (IMR),which measures the number of infant deaths per 1,000 live births,stands at 50. Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra have joined Kerala in achieving the MDG and four more states are close to the targets. However,Uttar Pradesh,Rajasthan,Assam still have an MMR of over 300. And even with a 17 per cent decline in the MMR and a decline of 3 points in IMR from 53 in 2008 to 50 in 2009 India will miss the MDG deadline of MMR at 109 and IMR at 28 by 2015. India is making progress but it would take a few more years to reach the goal, said Bhaskar Mishra,Deputy Registrar General,while releasing the figures on Thursday. The decline in the MMR has been accorded to the success of welfare schemes such as Janani Suraksha Yojana which offers a direct cash incentive to pregnant women. In the Empowered Action Group,which includes UP,MP,Jharkhand,Bihar,Chhattisgarh,Orissa,Rajasthan,Uttarakhand and Assam,the decline has been the highest in MMR at 18 per cent from 375 in 2004-06 to 308 in 2007-09. IMR declined by 30 points in the country from 1990 to 2009 and the rural areas overtook the urban centres in this regard. While rural IMR fell by 31 points,urban IMR declined by 16 points. Female IMR continues to be higher than male IMR,which could be because of the bias against girl child.
