NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR MATERNAL HEALTH & HUMAN RIGHTS

Towards attaining highest quality of maternal health for the marginalized in India
NAMHHR E-Newsletter

Issue-5
(September, 2011-January, 2012)

What NAMHHR has been doing in the last few months:

Cases of Maternal Deaths in Barwani, Madhya Pradesh:
Civil Society Meeting was co-organised by NAMHHR, Common Health and SATHI CEHAT on 6th September in Bhopal. The objective of this meeting was to mobilize local NGOs and networks to take up the issue of the condition of maternal health in the state. The meeting successfully brought together 26 members from 16 organisations. The meeting successfully mobilized the formation of a core group consisting members of 8 local organizations and networks, which chalked out several activities over the months which will culminate in a public dialogue to be held in Bhopal in 2012. th On the same day (6 Sept) in the evening, NAMHHR and other co-organizers met the Mission Director Dr. Manohar Agnani and other Government Officials. The purpose of this meeting was to update them about the situation in Barwani, th th following a second civil society fact finding on 26 and 27 August 2011. (NAMHHR was represented in this fact-finding by Namrata Daniel from All India Dalit Mahila Adhikar Manch). th An official letter from Joint Secretariat, NRHM Madhya Pradesh dated 18 Nov 2011 was addressed to NAMHHR and other co-organisers briefing them about the th decisions taken following the meeting on 6 Sept 2011 with NRHM officials.

UPCOMING EVENTS:
First conference call meeting of new SC in February. DFID IGMSY study report writing workshop in March. Sharing of DFID IGMSY study findings in April.

1. Action on cases of Maternal Mortality and Morbidity

UPDATES:
SAHAYOG has been unanimously elected by all NAMHHR SC members to continue as secretariat for the coming two years. The number of SC members have reduced from 13 to 9.The new SC now comprises of: o SODA (Orissa) o Healthwatch Forum UP o Ekjut(Jharkhand), o Chetna(Gujarat & Raj.) o CHSJ(New Delhi) o Ms.Kamayani o Ms.Jaya Valenkar o Ms. Anubha Rastogi

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NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR MATERNAL HEALTH & HUMAN RIGHTS

2. Right to Maternal Nutrition and Maternity Benefits

DFID agreed to fund a study by NAMMHR of Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahayog Yojana (IGMSY) scheme from September 2011 to March 2012. The study is being carried out in four states i.e. Jharkhand (Prerana Bharti), Odisha(SODA),West Bengal(ASHA) and Uttar Pradesh (SAHAYOG in partnership with Gramonnati Sansthan Mahoba) th The first advisory group meeting for the study was organized on the 14 of November in New Delhi. This was followed by a fieldworkers capacity building workshop (15-19 Nov).Please read more (http://namhhr.blogspot.com/2012/01/field-researchers-capacity building.html) NAMHHR E-Newsletter

Issue-5
Updates from Partners:
Sashi Bindhani represented NAMHHR in a public hearing Denial of Right to Health and Health Care (Focus on Women Health) at Bhubaneswar on 15December 2011.The Tribunal focused on the NRHM, with a focus on adolescent girls and aged womens health and the impact of schemes like JSY and health rights violations in the context of maternal mortality.

3. Alliance Building
NAMHHR participated in the Roti Bhaat Satyagrah, a Jan Manch organized by th Right to food Campaign at Jantar Mantar,Delhi on 29 November. It was organized to demand for a universal PDS and to ensure the right to food of the people. Please read more(http://namhhr.blogspot.com/2011/12/roti-bhaatsatyagrah-jan manch.html) SEWA Bharat invited NAMHHR as resource person to talk on the IGMSY scheme at a Health Conference on 13th December 2011.SEWA district level representatives from Bihar, Bengal, Gujarat, Delhi, Uttarkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan were present. NAMHHR (represented by Dr. Mira Shiva and Jashodhara Dasgupta) participated for the first time in the extended National Coordination Committee in Nagpur on 10-12 November. NAMHHR was introduced to the JSA-NCC group and its recent activities were shared in the plenary. Our Advisor Dr. Vandana Prasad was also present. NAMHHR is already working closely with other JSA members (SATHI, SAHAJ and SAMA) in Bhopal around the Barwani Maternal Deaths. th NAMHHR Secretariat attended the 6 Annual Campaign Co-ordination Group Meeting of the Wada Na Todo Abhiyan held on 27-28 September 2011, New Delhi.

4. NAMHHR Steering Committee Meetings

SC meeting held on 24th Nov through a conference call via www.sabsebolo.com

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2011 EVENTS:
NAMHHR Steering Committee and General Body meeting was held on the 16th January 2012. In this meeting, the after a review of the work of the older SC over the past two year, it was formally dissolved. This was followed by the election of the new SC. Further, through the day, members of the General Body and the new SC contextualized the situation of maternal health in the country and in the light of this identified broad areas in which NAMHHR could engage in during from 2012- 2014. IGMSY 2nd Advisory Group Meeting and Fieldworker and Capacity building Workshop in New Delhi was organized between 17th-19th January 2012.

Recent Resources on Maternal Health:

Ten years of negotiating rights around maternal health in Uttar Pradesh ,http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472698X/11/S3/S4 A global review of the key interventions related to reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, http://www.who.int/pmnch/topics/part_publications/201112_essential_interventions/en/index.html Public-Private Partnerships in Maternal Health Service, http://epw.in/epw/user/loginArticleError.jsp?hid_artid=16796 Pesticide used as an ingredient in infant formula ,http://dprogram.net/2011/12/08/why-is-pesticide-used-as-aningredient-in-infant-formula/ http://www.censusindia.gov.in/vital_statistics/SRS_Bulletins/Final-MMR%20Bulletin-2007-09_070711.pdf Maternal deaths in Rajasthan: http://www.ijme.in/193co184.html

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