New Delhi: The Ministry of Women & Child Development has asked the Union Health Ministry to make it mandatory for hospitals to display the number of caesarean deliveries being conducted.

Acting on a petition signed by over 10,000 women on Change.org, Union Minister Maneka Gandhi has also sought a report from gynaecologists conducting such operations in order to understand the gravity of the issue.

“I received a petition signed by over 10,000 women on Change.org and have asked for reports from Gynecologists to be submitted to check how many caesarean surgeries are being performed by them within a certain period of time,” said Gandhi.

Subarna Ghosh, the petitioner who had launched the petition on the site titled, “Make it mandatory for all hospitals to declare number of caesarean deliveries,” told News18 that this petition will now make the ‘big hospitals more accountable.”

“This directive by the Ministry and an implementation of the demands should have done long back. I am grateful that the government has acted on it. Now I am waiting for an action. My personal experience had triggered me to file this petition,” said Ghosh.

Ghosh with the support of a non-governmental organization, Birth India, started this petition and asked the Ministry of Women & Child Development to issue an advisory to the Medical Council of India to, Make it mandatory for all doctors and hospitals to declare the percentage of Caesarean delivery rates to patients, Conduct enquiry against those with abnormally high C-section rate, and Frame clear guidelines for conducting Caesarean to safeguard the health and rights of women and children.

Subarna said that even women need to be made aware of the impact of C-section conducted on them.

“This procedure is truly an emergency recourse and not a routine medical procedure. The fact is that only 10% of births should be via C-section, however, in Indian private hospitals that rate is close to 50%,” said the petitioner.