Pune: Despite being surrounded by people and staying active on social media, many people still experience deep loneliness and struggle to find someone who will listen to their grief, National Commission for Women (NCW) Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said on Tuesday. She stressed the need for support groups such as ‘Anubandh’ to provide emotional support to families dealing with pregnancy loss and the death of a child.Rahatkar was speaking at the launch of Anubandh, a support group initiated by Umarji Mother and Child Care Hospital in Balewadi for families who have experienced pregnancy loss, stillbirth or the death of a newborn. The initiative is based on the concept of moving “from pain to empathy, and from empathy to support”.Senior author, thinker and technology expert Achyut Godbole, Dr Pramod Umarji, Dr Mukta Umarji, Dr Chinmay Umarji, Dr Ketaki Umarji and Priyanka Umarji were among those present at the event. Godbole also delivered a special lecture on ‘Responsibilities Beyond Treatment: Science, Sensitivity and Social Awareness’.Rahatkar said society often struggles to understand the grief of parents who lose a child and is inadequately equipped to respond sensitively to their pain.“Understanding the emotions of people who are grieving and respecting their feelings is an important test of social sensitivity. Hundreds of people around us need emotional support for different reasons. Along with understanding them, we need to listen to them,” she said.Emphasising the importance of women’s health, Rahatkar said women are often the backbone of their families and that their physical and emotional well-being plays a crucial role in keeping families healthy.Godbole highlighted how changing social relationships affect mental well-being. He said the joint family system and close community relationships once provided people with a sense of security, although individual freedom was limited. Industrialisation brought greater personal freedom, but weakened traditional support systems, contributing to rising loneliness.“People may have thousands of friends on social media, but they often lack someone close enough to share their feelings with or turn to during difficult times. The problem of feeling lonely amid crowds is becoming serious. Support groups that bring people together and encourage meaningful interaction are therefore more necessary than ever,” he said.Dr Chinmay Umarji, in his introductory remarks, underlined the need to treat women with dignity and sensitivity during pregnancy-related complications and loss. He said women who experience the loss of a child require not only physical care but also emotional companionship and psychological support.He said Anubandh was launched under the Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness (PEL) initiative to extend support to affected families and create greater awareness about their emotional needs.According to the information shared at the event, more than six lakh babies in India die before their first birthday every year, around three lakh babies are stillborn, and approximately 10% to 15% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage. Families experiencing such losses often find it difficult to cope with the emotional trauma, making sensitive communication and community support essential.The hospital has taken the initiative to raise awareness about how society should respond to bereaved families, including which questions are appropriate and which remarks should be avoided.
