Guwahati, Jun 19 (PTI) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said the state has recorded a decline in the Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) to 125 during 2020-22 from 490 in 2001-03.
Addressing a press conference here, Sarma said the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) also has significantly improved in the state.
"With the whole-hearted efforts of the government of Assam in the last 20 years, our MMR has improved to 125 in 2020-22 from 490 in 2001-03," he said.
Over the last two decades, tremendous efforts have been undertaken, especially in the last 10 years, due to which significant improvement has been observed in the reduction of maternal mortality, he said.
"Assam is no longer the highest MMR state of the country. Assam’s MMR is now better than Madhya Pradesh (159), Chhattisgarh (141), Uttar Pradesh (141) and Odisha (136) as per Sample Registration System (SRS) 2020-22," the CM said.
Talking about the IMR, Sarma said the benchmark indicator in 2005 in Assam was 68, way above the national figure of 58.
As per SRS data, "IMR of Assam improved to 36 (in 2020), 34 (in 2021) and 32 (in 2022)," he added.