Andhra Pradesh to Build 35 Birth Waiting Rooms for Pregnant Women in ITDAs

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh government is constructing 35 Birth Waiting Homes across seven Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) areas at an estimated cost of Rs 12.25 crore.

Health minister Satya Kumar Yadav said on Tuesday that each of these homes will have eight rooms, four of which will be allotted for pregnant women, each with an attached toilet. Facilities will include a common kitchen, recreation room, reception room and store room, with each building costing Rs 35 lakh.

The homes are being set up at Paderu (15 homes) and Rampachodavaram, Parvathipuram, Chintur, Srisailam, Kota Ramachandrapuram (4 homes each). Of the 35 homes, 22 are expected to be ready by May-June, two by July, and the remaining by the end of 2026.

These facilities are being funded under the National Health Mission and supervised by ITDA officials. Pregnant women from agency areas will be brought to the homes at least one week before delivery by ANMs and ASHA workers to reduce transport and health-related difficulties.

Daily food allowance of Rs 200 will be provided to each pregnant woman and her assistant, with an additional Rs 200 for assistants as compensation for lost wages.

In the 2025–26 fiscal year, 11,000 pregnant women benefited from such homes. So far in the current fiscal, 9,500 women have availed the facilities. Expectations are that nearly 13,000 women will benefit by the end of the year.