Health system challenges in delivering maternal health care: evidence from a poor urban neighbourhood in South India

Introduction India is committed to achieve the Millennium Development Goals to control maternal mortality (MDG 5). Such commitment is concretised in the launching of the National Rural Health Mission, which aims at improving access to quality health care for poor women and children living in rural areas. Despite evidence on rapid urbanisation and the absence of any health safety net for the urban poor, the proposed National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) remains in draft form. Drawing on evidence from a poor urban neighbourhood in Karnataka, the paper discusses the health system challenges for delivery quality maternal health care.