Caesarean births in Urban India have risen from 7% in 1993 to 17% in 2006, the Economist pointed out in its new article. That sounds about true and probably the C-section births are much more than 17%. The Economist also points out the reasons for this rise as being: Indians’ belief in astrology, rise in mobile phone penetration which makes consulting astrology services easier, technology, and India’s rising income levels.

I disagree with all the reasons given by Economist for the rise in C-Section births. I will get to the real reasons in a bit. Before that let me get something off my chest. Technology and mobile phones are almost a standard template for all things related to India.

This reminds me of Sarah Lacy’s interpretation of why there aren’t many Indian users on Twitter while there are 44 million users on Facebook. It’s the standard template of poverty and other reasons which frequent almost any article written about India’s progress or the lack of it. It’s like writing an essay about a cow. You can find the context by reading this.

The only difference you see from the articles written back then and now is the reduced presence of cows and the increased presence of mobile phones. I have listed 10 clichés to refrain from when writing about India. I am inclined to add an 11th: mobile phones.

The real reasons
The real reasons for increased C-section births in urban India are rise in awareness levels, risk averse doctors, late marriages, and affinity to having one kid – which is a result of improved medical care and the guarantee that a child will live beyond 5 years.

Though rise in income levels seems like one of the reasons, it’s almost a tertiary reason. No body wants to tear up their body just because they have money. On the contrary, people with money would like less scars on their bodies. Non-invasive surgeries of all kinds are on the rise. Medical technology has cracked quite a few of these non-invasive surgeries, except for child birth.

Astrology is a probable side-effect of this new found awareness and risk averseness. Astrology comes into picture only when it has been decided by the gynecologist that the baby can only be delivered through C-section. Parents are not taking any chances. Doctors are absolutely not taking any chances. Because there is no need. Many urban Indians are covered by company insurance policy which provides anywhere between Rs. 30000 to Rs. 100,000 for pregnancy and child birth, putting the lack of money for an expensive surgery out of question.

There is a remote reason of doctors being commercially inclined to prescribe  C-sections even if there was a chance for a normal delivery. There is a small percentage of truth in that and may be small percentage of doctors do that. But I don’t want to believe in that, because when it comes to medical care no one wants conspiracy theories.

And no mobile phones did not play their part. Not on this one anyway.

PS: To ratify the Economist’s article, my son was born on an auspicious day. A day everyone remembers. And yes, we planned it. But only after the doctor has decided that it has to be a C-section. As I always say, context is paramount.