Stillbirth cases rising in five Karnataka districts, urban areas worst affected
Dharwad: Five districts of Karnataka are witnessing an increase in stillbirths, with government data showing higher rates in urban areas compared to rural regions.
According to the Health Department, the state’s overall stillbirth rate is 3.41 per cent (per 1,000 births), but some districts are reporting figures as high as 9.30 per cent. Haveri has recorded the highest rate, followed by Dharwad, Chamarajanagar, Gadag and Mysuru reported the Deccan Herald.
Data shows a worrying trend in districts such as Mysuru, Chikkamagaluru, Bengaluru Rural, Ballari and Davangere. These districts earlier had negligible rates but are now reporting a surge in the past three to four years.
In 2020, Karnataka registered 9.33 lakh births, of which 3.31 per cent were stillbirths. Of these, 2.11 per cent were from rural areas and 5.24 per cent from urban areas. In 2024-25, with 9.91 lakh births, the state recorded 3,244 stillbirths, of which 0.19 per cent were in rural areas and 7.28 per cent in urban centres.
The report cited causes including slow fetal growth, breathing problems during delivery, birth-related stress, strenuous work during pregnancy, accidents and medical terminations. Lifestyle factors such as obesity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and delay in reaching hospitals also contributed to the risk, doctors said.
Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said district health officers in affected areas have been asked to submit detailed reports and awareness drives are being conducted to educate women. Dharwad DHO S M Honakeri said a special team has been formed to study the cases and findings will be shared with the government within a month.
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'Rear-guard action': BJP over Mamata accepting sports minister's resignation after Messi event
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Tuesday alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's accepting Aroop Biswas' resignation as the state sports minister is nothing but a "rear-guard action" to douse public anger over the mismanagement of football icon Lionel Messi's event last week.
BJP co-in-charge for West Bengal Amit Malviya alleged that this is also an "open confession" that the Messi event fiasco was not accidental but a government-manufactured disaster, borne out of the poor governance of Banerjee, her ministers and the state bureaucracy.
Banerjee on Tuesday accepted Biswas' resignation as the sports minister in the wake of the controversy over the mismanagement of football icon Messi's event last week, a senior leader of the ruling TMC said.
Biswas, who had written to the chief minister seeking to be relieved of his responsibilities as sports minister, will continue as a cabinet minister, retaining charge of the power department.
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Reacting to the development, Malviya said in a post on X, "TMC Sports Minister Aroop Biswas resigns after the Messi fiasco and Mamata Banerjee accepts it in record time."
"Do not mistake this for accountability; this is nothing but a rear-guard action to douse public anger. anger! This is not 'Raj Dharma'," he added.
The BJP leader alleged that the incident was the outcome of "loot" of common people which is "so synonymous" with the TMC.
The incident was also the outcome of the "shameless VIP culture that TMC thrives on and deep-rooted cronyism promoted by Banerjee," he charged.
Malviya further alleged that Biswas' resignation exposes a "collective failure of Mamata Banerjee, her partisan bureaucracy, and her crony cabinet".
"This is a symbolic sacrifice, a political hoax, soon to be buried under layers of bureaucracy, with no justice, no accountability, and no remorse," the BJP leader said, adding, "No resignation will bring back the time lost, the money wasted, or the stolen chance for football lovers to witness Messi in Kolkata."
