📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Singh PreetManak
Politics
Tamil Nadu to Penalize Home Births Under New Law
✍️ The New Indian Express
🗓 18 Aug 2026, 01:37 PM
👁 6
Tamil Nadu will soon enact a law that makes home births punishable, aiming to curb maternal health risks and promote institutional deliveries.
Tamil Nadu has announced plans to introduce legislation that will make home births punishable, citing rising maternal mortality and complications associated with unregistered deliveries.
Under the proposed law, any delivery occurring outside a registered medical facility without a qualified professional will be treated as a violation, subject to fines or imprisonment.
Health officials say the measure seeks to encourage expectant mothers to opt for institutional deliveries, thereby improving access to emergency obstetric care and reducing preventable deaths.
The bill is expected to be tabled in the state assembly in the coming weeks, with detailed implementation guidelines to follow thereafter.
Under the proposed law, any delivery occurring outside a registered medical facility without a qualified professional will be treated as a violation, subject to fines or imprisonment.
Health officials say the measure seeks to encourage expectant mothers to opt for institutional deliveries, thereby improving access to emergency obstetric care and reducing preventable deaths.
The bill is expected to be tabled in the state assembly in the coming weeks, with detailed implementation guidelines to follow thereafter.