Jhenaidah, Nov. 9 -- Despite having modern buildings, expensive medical equipment, beds, generators and even residential facilities for health workers, four 10-bed Mother and Child Welfare Centres in Jhenaidah remain largely non-functional, eight years after their inauguration, due to a shortage of doctors.

The centres were established in Dudhshar and Kancherkol villages in Shailkupa upazila,Dakkhin Kashtasagra in Jhenaidah Sadar upazila and Kaliganj municipality, with the aim of bringing maternal and child healthcare services closer to rural communities.

The failure to operationalise the centres has left thousands of women and children in rural areas deprived of essential healthcare, particularly maternal and neonatal services, said lo...