Telangana witnesses sharp rise in medical termination of pregnancies

Telangana has seen a sharp and concerning rise in Medical Terminations of Pregnancy (MTPs), with numbers tripling in two years, reaching 16,059 in 2024-25. Experts link the surge to curtailed maternal welfare schemes, raising public health concerns

Hyderabad: Telangana has witnessed a concerning and dramatic surge in the number of Medical Terminations of Pregnancy (MTPs), especially in the last two-years between 2023-24 and 2024-2025.

The data, which was recently presented to the Rajya Sabha, shows a significant and near-exponential rise, raising questions about what factors could be influencing reproductive health decisions in the State.

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According to the provisional data available, in 2022-23, the annual MTPs in Telanganas were 4,071, which recorded a significant leap to 12,365 in 2023-24. The MTPs, quite shockingly, increased further to 16,059 in 2024-25, the countrywide on MTPs indicated.

The increase in 2023-24 is even more stark when looking at the years prior to that, with the number of MTPs jumping from 4,071 in 2022-23. The data indicates a consistent and rapid rise from just 1,578 MTPs in 2020-21.

The MTP count in the neighbouring Telugu-speaking State of Andhra Pradesh is significantly less when compared to that of Telangana.  In 2024-25, the number of MTPs in AP was 10,676, in 2023-24, the MTPs were 8,949 while in 2022-23, they were 8,446.

Even during prior years, the MTPs in the Telugu-speaking States are quite less, when compared to Telangana. In 2021-22, the MTPs in AP were 9, 119 while in 2020-21, it was 2,282, the data provided in the Rajya Sabha indicated.

Senior doctors and public health specialists in Hyderabad have said that the surge in MTPs present a really complex challenge to the health care administration. They also fear that the decision taken two-years ago to curtail KCR Kits and even KCR nutrition for mothers, might have played a role.

In a nutshell

Telangana has witnessed a dramatic surge in Medical Terminations of Pregnancy (MTPs) in the last two years.

The annual number of MTPs more than tripled in a single year.

 It jumped from 4,071 in 2022-23 to 12,365 in 2023-24 and the count increased to 16, 059

The count increased further to 16,059 in 2024-25.

While MTPs in Telangana rise, in Andhra Pradesh they reduce

Curtailment of KCR Kits and nutritional kits might have played a vital role in drop