Jaipur :Rajasthan's maternal healthcare system has yet again come under renewed scrutiny after two more new mothers died at Mahatma Gandhi Hospital (MGH), Bhilwara. According to hospital authorities, both women had normal deliveries and were not classified as high-risk pregnancies, but succumbed to severe postpartum bleeding.

 

The latest fatalities take the number of maternal deaths reported at the district's largest government hospital to seven in July, raising serious concerns over post-delivery care and emergency response.

 

The deaths on late Wednesday night come amid a series of maternal health incidents across Rajasthan, including five maternal deaths in Kota in May and two deaths in Bikaner following post-caesarean kidney failure in June. The first victim, Sugna Mohan Bairwa (22), a resident of Kotri, was referred to MG Hospital from Shahpura after developing complications following a normal delivery.

 

According to her family, her blood pressure dropped soon after childbirth. She was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), where she later died. Principal Medical Officer Dr Arun Gaur said Sugna suffered excessive postpartum haemorrhage, causing her haemoglobin level to fall dramatically from 10 g/dL to just 1.8 g/dL.

 

The second victim, Rani Bhura Banjara (18), a resident of Patel Nagar in Bhilwara city, also underwent a normal delivery at MG Hospital. Doctors said she developed sudden, severe postpartum bleeding.

 

While medication is usually administered first to control such bleeding, followed by surgery to remove the uterus if required, her condition deteriorated so rapidly that there was no time to perform the life-saving procedure.

 

Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) Dr Sanjeev Sharma said neither woman had been identified as a high-risk pregnancy during antenatal care. Both developed unexpected complications after delivery. He said an inquiry has been initiated to determine why the deaths occurred despite the availability of post-delivery monitoring and emergency treatment facilities. Investigators will examine the patients' medical histories, sonography reports, treatment records, and the exact causes of death.

 

During a recent week-long screening drive in Bhilwara district, health officials examined 2,210 pregnant women, of whom 500 (around 23 per cent) were identified as high-risk pregnancies. The identified risk factors included severe anaemia, hypertension, diabetes, heart and kidney diseases, previous caesarean deliveries, twin pregnancies, and other medical complications. However, officials noted that several recent maternal deaths involved women who had not been classified as high-risk.

 

The latest incidents add to a worrying trend in Rajasthan. In May, five women died after childbirth in Kota. In June, six women developed kidney failure following caesarean sections in Bikaner, with two later dying during treatment. In July, apart from the seven reported maternal deaths in Bhilwara, two more women died during treatment in Banswara. The recurring incidents have intensified concerns over maternal healthcare, particularly the management of postpartum complications and emergency obstetric care in government hospitals across the state.