Launched in June 2016, the Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyaan provides free, quality antenatal care to pregnant women, particularly in the second and third trimesters. Conducted on the 9th of every month — at designated government health facilities, the initiative aims to ensure early risk detection, timely medical interventions, and safer pregnancies. As it completes a decade on June 9, 2026, more than 7.50 crore pregnant women have received antenatal services under PMSMA in addition to routine ANC checkup services. Extended PMSMA launched in 2022 strengthens follow-up care and tracking for high-risk pregnancies.
Why Maternal Health Matters
Every pregnancy carries hope—not only for the family but also for the future of a community and the nation. Ensuring a safe pregnancy and healthy childbirth is therefore fundamental to both public health and human development. Yet pregnancy also involves risks that, if not identified and managed in time, may endanger the lives of both mother and child. Maternal health remains one of the clearest indicators of the strength and inclusiveness of a country's healthcare system.
What is Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR)
It is defined as the number of maternal deaths per 1 lakh live births during a given period. A maternal death refers to the death of a woman during pregnancy or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy due to causes related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, excluding accidental or incidental causes.
Before the launch of Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyaan (PMSMA), maternal mortality remained a major public health challenge. During 2014–16, India’s Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) stood at 130 per lakh live births.
The situation underscored the urgent need to strengthen maternal healthcare services across the country. Additionally, India had committed itself to achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of reducing maternal mortality to below 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030. Maternal health was also identified as a key priority under the National Health Policy, 2017, reinforcing the need for focused and sustained interventions. It was against this backdrop that the Government launched the Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyaan (PMSMA) in 2016.
Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyaan (PMSMA)
Launched on June 9, 2016, PMSMA provides free, comprehensive antenatal care to pregnant women — particularly those in their second and third trimesters — at designated government health facilities on the 9th of every month. The programme aims to ensure early risk detection, timely medical intervention, and safer pregnancies for every woman in India, regardless of where she lives.
The service package of PMSMA includes clinical examinations, laboratory investigations (blood and urine tests), ultrasonography, medicines, and counselling on nutrition, birth planning, and safe pregnancy practices. Key features include:
- Minimum one comprehensive and quality antenatal checkup by Obstetrician & Gynaecologist or Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEmONC).
- Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEmONC) / Basic Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (BEmONC) trained doctor during the second or third trimester.
- Mobilizing the pregnant women for specialist Antenatal care services at designated public health facilities.
- High Risk Pregnancy (HRP) identification by screening for 25 high risk factors and management at an early stage.
- Linking of HRPs to the nearest first referral unit (FRU) for a safe delivery.
- Empanelment of private service providers for PMSMA service provision.
- Service package includes essential blood & urine investigations and ultrasonography.
- Counselling on nutrition, appropriate birth planning and complication readiness for each pregnant woman.
- Pregnant women in their second trimester (13–27 weeks) or third trimester (28 to till delivery).
- Indian citizens residing in India, willing to visit designated government health facilities on the 9th of every month.
- High-risk pregnancy cases receive priority attention and follow-up care.
- Women who are dropouts from regular antenatal care are actively encouraged to participate.
- The program actively welcomes OB-GYN specialists, radiologists, and physicians from the private sector to volunteer their time on the 9th of every month. The Prime Minister himself called on doctors to dedicate just 12 days a year to this cause during a 'Mann Ki Baat' address. Doctors can register through the official PMSMA portal. Volunteers are recognised through the IPledgeFor9' Achievers Awards for their contributions.
- Notably, India achieved a 43 points reduction in Maternal Mortality Ratio, bringing it down from 130 to 87 maternal deaths per lakh live births between 2014–16 and 2022–24
- Extended PMSMA: Strengthening Follow-Up Care
- Government launched the Extended PMSMA Strategy in January 2022 to strengthen follow-up care. The initiative ensures that women identified as high-risk receive additional antenatal check-ups, continuous monitoring and timely medical support throughout pregnancy.
- PMSMA does not operate in isolation. It forms part of a larger ecosystem of maternal and child health programmes implemented by the Government.
- The Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) promotes institutional deliveries. Since 2014-15, it has benefited more than 11.96 crore women as of March 2025.
- The Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (JSSK) provides free healthcare services to pregnant women and newborns. Since 2014-15, more than 18.05 crore beneficiaries receiving support under the scheme.
- The Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan (SUMAN) strengthens quality maternal healthcare through a network of over 99,290 facilities.
- Other initiatives such as Prime Minister's Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nourishment (POSHAN) Abhiyaan, Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), and Labour Room Quality Improvement Initiative (LaQshya) address maternal nutrition, maternity benefits, and quality of care in labour rooms.
