NATIONAL RURAL HEALTH MISSION (NRHM) AND CHANGES IN MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH CARE: AN EVALUATIVE STUDY IN RAJASTHAN

This study is based on the primary data collected from 160 households of 08 villages in Tonk district of Rajasthan. The main objective of the study was to find out the changes in four key basic health care services of MCH services- ANC, Delivery, PNC and Immunisation. The findings show that the percentage of ANC registration has gone up from 41.7 percent to 86.2 percent from the year 2006 to 2013. Similarly, the three ante-natal checkups, consumption of IFA and Vitamin-A tablets and administration of TT has gone up by 17.2, 66.7 and 23.2 percent respectively from 2006 to 2013. It is important to note that 84.8 percent of antenatal women have received counselling on food and nutritional care during delivery which did not transpire before NRHM. The institutional delivery particularly in the government health care institutions has gone up by 37.1 percent. On the other hand, the percentage of home delivery has reduced by 49.4 percent. Thus NRHM has made a considerable difference in institutional delivery status. The status of post-natal care is very low and only 52.2 percent of women have received post-natal care checkup by ANM and only 42.1 percent post-natal women have received medicine/TT injection. This means a great deal of initiative has to be taken for raising the post-natal care of women. The full immunization status of children in the age-group 0-2 years has increased by 19.5 percent that is from 47.9 percent in 2006 to 67.4 percent in 2013. This means that population belonging to the rural areas has received more benefit through NRHM programme. In other words, NRHM has ensured equity in health care service distribution to the rural areas of backward districts as well as high focused state also.