Agra, Jan 18 (IANS): A group of gynaecologists and obstetricians from across India and a dozen foreign countries has called for a major thrust to women-oriented health policies.

The demand, that came after a five-day meeting organised by the Federation of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians Associations of India (FOGSI) concluded here late on Sunday, is aimed at speeding up development and securing a safe future for coming generations.

An American institution, March of Freedom, also committed $20 lakh for a campaign to prevent pre-mature deaths in the wombs, and to support research by Indian doctors in this field.

According to an estimate, the number of pre-mature babies born world-wide is around 15 million.

"More than 12,000 medical professionals and related people participated in the meeting which held 30 panel discussions and 18 workshops during the five days. More than a thousand research papers were presented," Jaideep Malhotra, secretary of the organising committee told IANS.