Lok Sabha Question No. 3253 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-12-17
Subject: Reproductive and Child Health Portal (RCH)
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Dhanush M Kumar, C.N. Annadurai, Gajanan Chandrakant Kirtikar, Ganesan Selvam, Gautham Sigamani Pon, Omprakash Bhupalsinh alias Pawan Rajenimbalkar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 3253 TO BE ANSWERED ON 17 th  DECEMBER, 2021

## REPRODUCTIVE AND CHILD HEALTH PORTAL (RCH)

## 3253.   SHRI DHANUSH M. KUMAR:

SHRI C.N. ANNADURAI:

SHRI GAJANAN KIRTIKAR:

SHRI SELVAM G.:

SHRI GAUTHAM SIGAMANI PON:

SHRI OMPRAKASH BHUPALSINH ALIAS

PAWAN RAJENIMBALKAR:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

- (a)  the  number of pregnant women registered in Reproductive and Child Health Portal (RCH) during each of the last three years and the current year;
- (b) the number of rural and remote areas dominated by SC/ST that have been covered in Mother and Child Tracking System (MCTS)/RCH portal;
- (c) whether the Government has organized any awareness programme about RCH Portal/MCTS for thebenefit of pregnant women;
- (d) if so, the details thereof and the challenges faced by the Government while implementing the awareness programme;
- (e)  the  funds  allocated  and  utilized  under  MCTS  during  each  of  the  last  three  years  and  the current year along with the achievement made as a result thereof, State/UT-wise; and
- (f) the steps taken by the Government to facilitate timely delivery of antenatal and postnatal care servicesto all the pregnant women along with immunization to the children?

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY

## ANSWER WELFARE (DR. BHARATI PRAVIN PAWAR)

- (a) The total number of pregnant women registered on the RCH/MCTS portal across the country during 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22(till 14 th December 2021) is given below:
- (b) The MCTS/RCH portal covers the country as a whole, having the mapping of rural and urban areas separately. However, no such mapping of rural and remote areas dominated by SC/ST is maintained on MCTS/RCH Portal.

| Financial Year   | No. of Pregnant Women Registered on RCH/MCTS Portal   |
|------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|
| 2018-19          | 1,79,544,45                                           |
| 2019-20          | 1,88,30,430                                           |

| 2020-21                        | 1,44,99,532   |
|--------------------------------|---------------|
| 2021-22 (as on 14 th Dec 2021) | 78,39,841     |

(c) & (d) RCH Portal is a digital initiative for early identification and tracking of the individual beneficiary throughout the reproductive lifecycle of women and promote, monitor and support the State/UTs for reproductive, maternal, new-born and child health (RMNCH) schemes/programme delivery and reporting. Workshop and training programmes for RCH portal and ANMOL (ANMOL is a tablet version of the RCH portal) are conducted on a regular basis at National,  State  and  Regional  level  with  participation  from  States/UTs.  The  States  conduct training for district and block data managers, data entry operators and ANMs /ASHAs. Review meetings and field visits to assess the performance of the RCH portal and to provide training on new features, and refresher trainings are conducted regularly.

- (e)  Since  RCH  portal  is  maintained  centrally  by  MoHFW,  separate  funds  for  implementation support of MCTS/RCH Portal are not allocated to States/UTs.
- (f) Primary responsibility of improving access to healthcare facilities, including timely delivery of antenatal and postnatal care services to all the pregnant women along with immunization to the children lie with the respective State/UT Governments. To address the healthcare challenges, National  Health  Mission  (NHM)  supplements  the  efforts  of  the  State/UT  Governments  to provide accessible, affordable and quality healthcare to all.

The  various  steps  taken  under  the  National  Health  Mission,  to  facilitate  timely  delivery  of antenatal and postnatal care services to all the pregnant women are as follows:

-  Surakshit  Matritva  Aashwasan  (SUMAN) to  provide  assured,  dignified,  respectful  and quality healthcare to every woman and newborn visiting the public health facility.
-  Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA) provides a minimum package of antenatal care services including investigations and drugs on the 9 th day of every month.
-  Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) entitles  all  pregnant  women  delivering  in public health institutions to free antenatal checkups, delivery and complications.
-  LaQshya improves  the  quality  of  care  in  labour  room  and  maternity  operation  theatres  to ensure  that  pregnant  women  receive  respectful  and  quality  care  during  delivery  and

immediate post-partum.

-  Monthly  Village  Health,  Sanitation  and  Nutrition  Days  (VHSND) for  Community Outreach through the Monthly Village Health, Sanitation and Nutrition Days (VHSND) for provision of maternal and child care services.
-  MCP  Card  and  Safe  Motherhood  Booklet are  distributed  to  the  pregnant  women  for educating  them  on  diet,  rest,  danger  signs  of  pregnancy,  benefit  schemes  and  institutional deliveries.
-  Engagement  of  more  than  10  lakhs Accredited  Social  Health  Activists  (ASHAs) for community mobilization
-  Regular IEC/BCC is also a part of all the schemes for greater demand generation.

Further,  under  the  Universal  Immunization  Programme  (UIP)  by  Government  of  India, vaccination services are provided to all eligible beneficiaries including children, adolescent and pregnant women for 12 Vaccine Preventable Diseases (VPDs)  through approximately 1.2 crore sessions yearly. Vaccines are supplied to all areas across the country including rural and remote areas through 29,000 Cold Chain Points (CCP). The children due for vaccination are listed and mobilized  by  ASHAs  and  AWWs.  Similarly,  in  the  urban  areas,  the  vaccination  services  are provided at vaccination centres.