Kolkata: Bengal health minister Sharadwat Mukherjee has hinted at an aggressive campaign against underage marriage and the adoption of a two-child policy across the state to bring down maternal mortality.“It is a matter of shame that Bengal is No. 1 in teenage pregnancy data. We got this information during maternal death review meetings. Underage pregnancy is a major risk factor in maternal mortality, and we need to stop this,” the minister said.The minister said a two-pronged awareness campaign focusing on preventing underage marriage and promoting a two-child policy will soon be launched to reduce maternal mortality.Mukherjee cited instances that emerged during review meetings, including extreme cases of a 12-year-old becoming a mother and a woman dying while delivering her 14th child. The health department, he said, is determined to stop such incidents.The minister highlighted a few districts with high incidences of underage marriage where the maternal mortality rate is also high.“I have told district magistrates that if they receive information about the marriage of a minor girl, they must go there, speak to people, and try to socially prevent it. If the marriage has already taken place, necessary legal action must follow. Those who marry minor girls are also offenders,” Mukherjee said.InsetSunderbans gets 2 floating medical unitsHealth minister Sharwadwat Mukherjee inaugurated two floating medical units on Tuesday to cater to the medical needs of people in Sunderbans. The units have doctors and nurses, along with facilities like X-ray and sonography. The health department has also acquired speedboats to serve as ambulances to ferry patients to and from the floating medical units.
