Jammu Kashmir Sees Surge in Institutional Deliveries, Rs 4.4 Crore Allocated for Referral Transport

SRINAGAR: Institutional child deliveries in Jammu and Kashmir have risen sharply since the launch of the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), with government data showing that the Union Territory spent Rs 4.4 crore on referral transport services for pregnant women in 2024–25 alone.

According to a reply tabled in the Lok Sabha by Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda, the spending in JK under the National Health Mission’s referral transport component has increased from just Rs 15 lakh in 2019–20 to more than Rs 3.55 crore in 2023–24, reaching Rs 4.4 crore in the current financial year. The funds have supported free home-to-facility transport, inter-facility transfers, and drop-back services under the Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (JSSK), including alternative transport such as boat and palki ambulances in hard-to-reach areas.

Nationally, institutional deliveries have surged from 38.7% in 2005–06 (NFHS-3) to 88.6% in 2019–21 (NFHS-5). The government attributes the improvement to a raft of maternal and child health interventions — including Janani Suraksha Yojana, JSSK, Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan, LaQshya labour room quality improvement, and Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan (SUMAN).

Schemes have also focused on emergency referral systems such as the 108 and 102 ambulance networks, mobile medical units, obstetric HDUs and ICUs, and birth waiting homes in remote areas. Between 2019–20 and 2024–25, more than 2.8 crore pregnant women nationwide have used free home-to-facility transport under JSSK, with over 62 lakh receiving inter-facility transfers and nearly 2.84 crore provided drop-back services after delivery.

Nadda told the House that these measures aim to ensure that no pregnant woman is denied access to quality maternal care due to distance or cost, a challenge that has been acute in rural, hilly, and border regions such as Jammu and Kashmir.