Budget crunch deprives new mothers of maternity allowance

BAITADI: The provision of monetary allowance for a woman delivering a child at the health facility has been in force for years in the country. Such woman is expected to get the allowance immediately after the child birth. Presently, the scheme aims to promote safe motherhood programme, and under which such woman gets Rs 2,000 and extra Rs 800 for meeting the criteria for visiting the health institute for pregnancy check-ups for four times.
The District Pubic Heath Office Baitadi says it is unable to distribute the allowance at all 10 levels in the current fiscal. Though the policy demands the distribution of the allowance on the spot, it could not take place to date in the current fiscal due to budgetary constraint. Chhaukham health post in-charge Hemant Singh Saud said the new mothers expressed their concerns for not getting allowance on time.
Melauli municipality health coordinator Narayan Chand admitted that the local government in the current fiscal received a minimum budget for the maternity allowance programme. Until last year, women giving birth to children would draw Rs 1,000 and the amount was doubled in the current fiscal.Similarly, the Purchaudi municipality has been unable to release the maternity allowance since mid April, health coordinator Binod Kumar Kunwar said.