A River, No Bridge, A Baby Born on a Cot: The Plight of MP Village Woman
- Jun 28
- 1 min read
A woman delivered her baby after villagers carried her across a river, highlighting poor infrastructure in Madhya Pradesh's remote villages.
By Pranjal Gupta
New Delhi, June 28: A recent incident from Chhindwara district has once again highlighted how several villages remain cut off from basic infrastructure, including access to emergency healthcare.
A woman in the Amarwara block went into labour on Wednesday. When an ASHA worker called for medical assistance, an ambulance was unable to reach her village, which has a population of around 20 residents. Villagers said poor mobile network connectivity and the need to cross a river delayed emergency services, The Times of India reported.
According to the villagers, they have been demanding a bridge for years, but none has been built. To reach the main road, residents must cross the river—a journey that becomes especially dangerous during the monsoon.
As the ambulance failed to arrive and the woman's condition worsened, villagers carried her on a cot across the river. She delivered her baby before reaching the healthcare facility. After making it to the main road, the woman and her newborn were taken to the hospital on a motorcycle.
Block Medical Officer Dr K. Thakur said the woman was brought to the hospital after labour pains began and confirmed that both the mother and the child are healthy, the report added.
The incident has once again drawn attention to the challenges faced by residents of remote villages, where inadequate transport infrastructure continues to delay access to life-saving medical care.
