Uttar Pradesh Health, Family Welfare and Mother and Child Welfare minister in Lucknow on 3rd July said that he would like to see the issue of teenage pregnancy take the shape of mass movement for it to be eradicated at the grassroot level in the state.

Addressing a conference on ‘‘Kishoriyon par matritva ka bojh (Combating Teenage Pregnancies: Challenges and the Demand for Change with reference to Uttar Pradesh), he said “Every tenth teenage pregnant girl in India resides in UP and hence all concerned have to make efforts in this regard. We have to fulfill the vision of Beti Bachao and ensure that every young daughter who is saved, is also provided with comprehensive healthcare facilities as well, so that she can become an educated and independent adult”.

“With largest population among states in the country any issue that affects Uttar Pradesh also has a big impact on the healthcare scenario of the country. Therefore, it is imperative for us to ensure improved and sustained access for the young girls’ healthcare needs”, he mentioned adding that, “it is very important for the daughters of the state to be healthy so that they can achieve their aspirations and help society to progress.”

Teenage pregnancy is a big concern for UP despite the state putting consistent efforts to improve its social development indicators. The state needs to enhance its healthcare services for its adolescent girls to eliminate the cases of teenage pregnancy and early childbearing. This would provide considerable impetus to the state’s economic growth.

The data from the fourth round of National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) shows that the prevalence rate of teenage pregnancy and childbearing for UP stands at 3.8 per cent. Of this, most of the cases are found in the state’s rural areas, where the prevalence rate is at 4.4 per cent, while it’s 2.2 per cent for the urban areas of the state.

The Government of Uttar Pradesh in 2018 had announced a state health policy which would give direction to a lot of health concerns that the state is dealing with at the moment.