THATTA, May 11: Pakistan People’s Party MPA Humera Alwani has said that health facilities are in a deplorable state in many districts of Sindh, particularly in the coastal areas where maternal mortality rate is higher than in other districts.

She said at a meeting of the women’s wing of PPP Thatta chapter that the mothers were facing increasing hardships. Over 380 women become pregnant every minute and almost every 60 seconds one of them die due to pregnancy and childbirth related complications.

She said that over 500,000 women died each year and 99 per cent deaths occurred in the developing world.

The maternal mortality rate varied widely in different regions but it was always high in countries where infant morality rate was high, reflecting poor nutrition and medical care, she said.—Correspondent