New Delhi: Despite sharp gains in hospital-based childbirth, a small share of deliveries in Delhi continues to take place outside medical institutions and is attended by relatives or other untrained persons, according to Delhi govt data on type of medical attention received at birth released recently. The data for 2005–2024 show that although institutional deliveries have risen consistently over the past two decades, 2.4% of births in 2024 were still assisted by relatives, untrained persons and 0.9% of births were not clearly recorded under formal medical categories. This is down from 6.8% in 2005, but underscores that informal delivery practices have not been fully phased out. Former Safdarjung Hospital professor Achala Batra said the govt had made significant efforts, including financial incentives for expectant mothers, to increase institutional deliveries. “Yet distance to hospitals and the fear of caesarean deliveries continue to discourage women from seeking institutional care, pushing some towards home births,” she said. Former MCD health department head Arun Yadav said the numbers were not alarming but added that the capital should aim for near-universal institutional deliveries. “In cases of home births, the risk of infections increases as hygienic practices are not followed and serious complications can arise,” he said. A senior official said that the remaining gap reflects socio-economic disparities, migrant families without documentation, limited awareness among vulnerable communities and cultural preferences for home deliveries. The data also indicates a steep decline in births conducted by untrained midwives. In 2005, around 19.2% of deliveries were handled by traditional birth attendants; by 2024, the share had dropped to 0.9%. An official said this pointed to a shift away from unsafe, informal practices towards medically supervised care. Even home deliveries assisted by qualified doctors or nurses declined after peaking around 2010. Officials said this showed that skilled care had increasingly moved into hospitals and formal health facilities equipped with emergency support. Institutional deliveries rose from 73.7% in 2005 to 96.1% in 2024 — an increase of more than 22 percentage points. Delhi crossed the 90% mark in 2018 and has steadily consolidated its gains since. Officials attributed the rise to expanded maternal health infrastructure, incentive-based schemes promoting hospital births and stronger antenatal outreach. The trend reflects a broader structural shift in maternal healthcare, with hospital births now dominating. “Yet the last stretch towards universal institutional delivery may be the hardest,” the official said. Ensuring that the remaining 2.4% of births occur under medical supervision will require targeted interventions, especially among marginalised communities, he said.
