Stating that there has been an increase in Caesarean section (C-section) deliveries, Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao Monday said the state government will implement a new program next month to curb C-section deliveries. Rao made the statement while speaking at the Legislative Council at Suvarna Soudha in Belagavi. “The C-section rate, which was 35 per cent in 2021-2022, increased to 38 per cent in 2022-23. Currently, the C-section rate in the state is 46 per cent. Especially in private hospitals, 61 per cent of C-sections are being performed. Private hospitals are increasingly performing Caesarean deliveries because they generate more income from C-sections and can be performed easily. It is essential to curb this from the point of view of the health of the mother and the child. In this regard, women need to be mentally prepared to have a natural birth,” the minister said. Reacting to Rao’s remark, Dr Shaibya Saldanha, a Bengaluru-based consultant obstetrician-gynaecologist, said that there were various factors leading to C-section surgeries. “Now, the women’s age of delivering babies has relatively increased compared to three to four decades ago. Some women at the age of 35 years are delivering their first baby. In some cases, women go through the fertility process and doctors don’t want to risk these situations. Also, many pregnant women are facing high blood pressure, diabetes, and other complications where C-section deliveries are preferred.” Stating that the doctors must be well trained to decide on C-section deliveries, Dr Saldanha said, “A C-section delivery is better than a difficult normal delivery and a safe normal delivery is better than C-section delivery.” 46 people arrested for female foeticide Rao informed the House that eight female foeticide cases have been registered in the state since 2023-24 and 46 people arrested. A large number of foeticide cases has been detected due to increased surveillance of scanning centres and hospitals, the minister claimed. “To prevent foeticide in the state, the government has formed statutory committees under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act in the… districts. Since 2018, all scanning centres in the state have been compulsorily registered… through the ‘Balika’ online software,” Rao said. He added that information technology is being used to monitor sex ratio data at the time of birth at the village level. “So far in the state, a total of 136 cases have been filed in court against scanning centres/ owners/ doctors who have violated the PCPNDT Act… Sixty-five cases are pending in the court at various stages,” Rao further said. He also said that the reward given by the Karnataka government to people who provide information regarding female foeticide has been raised from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh. A state task force has been formed under the chairmanship of the health commissioner for the effective implementation of the PCPNDT Act, and secret operations have been carried out in Bengaluru Rural, Belgaum, Mandya, and Kolar districts, the minister added. Fake doctors Responding to another question by MLC Govindaraju, Rao said 134 fake doctors have been identified in Kolar district alone since January 2021. Stating that fake doctors primarily operate in border districts, Rao added, “The moment they (fake doctors) get caught in Karnataka, they shift to the neighbouring state to operate. When they get caught there, they return to Karnataka. Many times, the local elected representatives and seers come to their rescue…”
