The Parsi Lying-in Hospital (PLIH), also known as Temulji's Lying-in Hospital, sometimes spelled Tehmulji's Lying-in Hospital, was one of the first

maternity hospital A maternity hospital specializes in caring for women during pregnancy and childbirth. It also provides care for newborn infants, and may act as a centre for clinical training in midwifery and obstetrics. Formerly known as lying-in hospitals, most ...

s in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

(now Mumbai). It was co-founded by physician and obstetrician Temulji Bhicaji Nariman in 1887 and completed in 1895. Dwindling numbers of

Parsi The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...

births in the latter half of the 20th century led to its closure.

Origins

During the 19th century, Bombay's Parsi women had largely given birth at home, confined to poorly ventilated and unsanitary conditions. In 1887, obstetrician and dean of

Grant Medical College The Grant Government Medical College is a public university, public medical school, medical college located in Mumbai, India. It is affiliated to the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences. Founded in 1845, it is one of the oldest medical co ...

, Temulji Nariman, concerned about the prevalence of

puerperal fever The postpartum (or postnatal) period begins after childbirth and is typically considered to last for six to eight weeks. There are three distinct phases of the postnatal period; the acute phase, lasting for six to twelve hours after birth; the ...

, founded the PLIH. The hospital was initially located in a small house facing the ocean in the Marine Lines. It was run by Nariman as the Parsi Maternity Asylum and established Nariman's name in the community. Shortly, however, a plot was bought from the government on the esplanade in the Hornby Estate of Mumbai. The building was designed by Muncherji Murzban, a key figure in the

Bombay Municipal Corporation The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), or the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) is the governing civic body of Mumbai, the capital city of Maharashtra. Salman Khan Is Now Brand Ambassador of BMC from 2016. The BMC is India ...

who was inspired by the Peabody estates of London and who oversaw the construction of the building. It was completed in 1895 at a cost 105,000

rupees Rupee (, ) is the common name for the currencies of India, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, and of former currencies of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (as the Gulf rupee), British East Afr ...

but by 1914, the total cost had increased to 130,541 rupees. Fakirjee Dinshaw served as the contractor. It was one of the city's first maternity hospitals built in the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

style. Arranged around a courtyard, it could accommodate 50 women. It became popularly known as Temuljinu Suvarvakhana (Temulji’s lying-house).

Early years

Previously, during their confinement, women had been located in the darkest and dampest corners of the house on the ground floor where sewage gases could contribute to ill-health. The PLIH, however, located women on upper floors with better hygiene and more space. The hospital acquired a reputation for cleanliness and the availability of midwives and clean linen. New mothers stayed for more than a month and it was felt by the Parsi community that it fulfilled an unmet need. Temulji Nariman became symbolic of "Parsi motherhood". He was the hospital's honorary secretary and chief physician at the time of the opening ceremony on 11 January 1895, and he encouraged the wealthier Parsis to allow those poorer to make use of its placements. The fee structure had three tiers. The third class received free treatment, the second class paid 1.80 rupees per day and first class paid 3 rupees per day. A refundable deposit was also taken. Within the first four years, about 1,750 patients had been treated and by the turn of the 20th century, Parsi women had three hospitals to choose from within the district of the Esplanade, the Bomanjee Edaljee Allbless Obstetric Hospital, the Pestanjee Hormusjee Cama Hospital for Women and Children and the PLIH. Among notable Parsis born at the PLIH, were

Feroze Gandhi Feroze Jehangir Gandhi (12 September 1912 – 8 September 1960) was an Indian freedom fighter, politician and journalist. He served as a member of the provincial parliament between 1950 and 1952, and later a member of the Lok Sabha, the Lower ...

in 1912.

Jamsetji Tata Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata (3 March 1839 – 19 May 1904) was an Indian industrialist and philanthropist who founded the Tata Group, India's largest conglomerate. He established the city of Jamshedpur. Born into a Zoroastrian Parsi family in ...

was a committee member.

Later years

In the early 21st century there were plans to convert the grade 2B listed building into an orthopaedic hospital, however, in 2015 the first floor was being used as offices and the remainder of the building was empty.

References

{{Reflist Hospital buildings completed in 1895 Maternity hospitals in India Hospitals in Mumbai Parsi culture Hospitals established in 1887 Gothic Revival architecture in India 1887 establishments in British India