A quiet crisis is unfolding across India — not in hospitals, but in homes, workplaces, and wedding halls, where young couples are unknowingly trading their fertility window for career goals, delayed marriages, and child-free lifestyles. By the time many realise it, biology has already caught up. For two decades, Dr Krishna Chaitanya Mantravadi, scientific head and clinical embryologist at Oasis Fertility, has watched this pattern unfold. Through the Oasis Janani Yatra, a pioneering mobile fertility clinic that has travelled across nine states and hundreds of towns, he is taking fertility awareness directly to communities.
The initiative emerged from a sobering demographic reality. “A total fertility rate survey conducted by the Institute of Public Health showed Telangana at 1.8 percent and Andhra Pradesh at 1.7 percent — well below the 2.1 percent replacement threshold,” says Dr Krishna, adding, “If this trend continues, in the next 10 to 15 years, we’ll see a sudden gap because there’ll be no young crowd to take care of society.”
He attributes the decline to both social and biological factors. Urbanisation has pushed the average marriage age to around 25, while career ambitions and the growing DINK (Double Income, No Kids) culture have led many couples to postpone parenthood. “That’s not wrong. But what they don’t realise is that biology doesn’t wait for the plan,” he says.
The Janani Yatra’s mission is awareness, not recruitment. The fully equipped mobile clinic includes a counsellor, gynaecologist, semen-analysis facilities, and educational videos. “We don’t want to go and sell IVF there. The message is that family building is important — and it has time limitations,” Dr Krishna stresses.
The response has been strong. The Yatra services over 20 patients daily, and 25 to 30 percent of those counselled later follow up at Oasis clinics. “In tier-two and tier-three towns, the response has been overwhelming,” he says.
When asked what is driving fertility decline, Dr Krishna points to modern lifestyles. “Our sleep patterns are changing because we can’t put the phone down. BMIs have gone up. Food is adulterated. From the lukewarm water with honey in the morning to the ice cream at night, the lifestyle is just messed up,” he shares.
Infertility stigma remains a major barrier. “You’re sitting in a gathering, a puja, and the first question a couple is asked is how many children they have. That’s such an unpleasant conversation for someone who is really struggling,” narrates Dr Krishna.
While fertility services have expanded into smaller cities, awareness remains lacking. To bridge that gap, Oasis has established satellite centres in cities including Warangal, Karimnagar, Khammam, Nalgonda, and Nizamabad. Dr Krishna also praises Telangana’s government IVF services. “At Gandhi Hospital, Petlaburj Maternity, and MGM Hospital in Warangal, IVF is available free of cost,” Dr Krishna notes.
According to Dr Krishna, the message is clear. “We have already hit crisis. We need awareness at a systemic level — government, media, schools, colleges. Reproductive health needs to be drilled into young people,” highlights Dr Krishna.
His advice to couples is straightforward: “Have eight hours of sleep. Eat clean. Exercise. Be sexually active at least three times a week if you’re trying to conceive. If after a year of trying nothing has happened, see a gynaecologist. The solution might just be losing weight, quitting smoking, or fixing your sleep.”