Dr. Kirandeep Kaur is a legal academic and researcher with expertise in women’s rights, health law, gender justice, human rights, and constitutional law. She holds a PhD in Law from the National Law School of India University, with research focused on legal reforms in India’s health sector from the perspective of women’s issues. She has over a decade of teaching and research experience and has contributed to work on women’s rights, gender equality, sexual harassment, domestic violence, and women’s health. She has authored books and peer-reviewed research on women’s legal and healthcare rights.

Asking the “maternal health” question in India Abstract The term maternal health often refers to the health of a woman “during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period.” It envisages within its ambit various facets of family planning, pre-conception and pre-natal stages, post-natal care and certain aspects of reproductive healthcare in general. It is important to note that healthcare for a woman before, during and after pregnancy is very pivotal in this regard. All births should be facilitated with the help of skilled health professionals. Timely and appropriate treatment can play a major role as the determinant factor in the life or death of both the mother and the newborn. Sustainable Development Goal 3.1 sets down the goal pertaining to maternal mortality, that is, "Reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 per 100 000 live births."[2] According to WHO data, around “260 000 women died during and following pregnancy and childbirth in 2023.”[3] Most maternal deaths can be prevented as the health-care solutions to address these issues are well-known but because of lack of access to the same the situation is so grim.[4] The Government of India has been focussing over this goal with the help of various initiatives, including joint initiatives with UNICEF. This paper aims to test these initiatives in the light of the ends they have achieved by far in the country. The research methodology is a coordinate combination of analytical, doctrinal and empirical research methods. The research aims to arrive at answers to the following research questions: ·         What are the factors affecting maternal health? ·         How far do the laws and policies in India facilitate pre-natal and post-natal care for the mother? ·         What are the National Policies of the Indian Government which directly or indirectly affect maternal health and MMR? What steps can be taken at the National and State level to improve the situation of maternal health of women? In seeking answer to these questions, the ultimate aim is to make suggestions for improving the conditions of maternal health of women in India.