Assam’s Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) falling below the national average is not just an incremental gain; it is a watershed shift in maternal health indicators of the state. The latest Sample Registration System bulletin highlights that the state’s MMR has fallen to 84 maternal deaths per 1,00,000 live births against the national average of 87. The transformative drop in the state’s MMR from a staggering 480 in 2006 to the current figure speaks volumes about the strategic and result-orientated interventions made in the health sector. Only sustained efforts and long-term commitments will enable the state to sustain the momentum and reach the World Health Organisation (WHO)-mandated goal of bringing MMR below 70 by 2030. WHO defines MMR to be the annual number of female deaths from any cause related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management (excluding accidental or incidental causes) during pregnancy and childbirth, or within 42 days of pregnancy, regardless of how long the pregnancy lasted or where it occurred. Assam’s MMR being the second lowest after Jharkhand (82) among the “Empowered Action Group” (EAG) states comprising Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Assam has positioned itself as an emerging leader in maternal healthcare among the states which are historically known to have very high MMR and are struggling to reduce it below the national average. The SRS bulletin highlights that the EAG sub-total is 116, and primarily Uttar Pradesh with MMR 154, Madhya Pradesh with 135, and 124 each from Chhattisgarh and Odisha have dragged the average of this cluster of states. Nevertheless, it is a long way to go for Assam to match the maternal health outcomes achieved by the “Southern States” – Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The sub-total MMR of these five Southern states is estimated at 41, which is far below the national average and demonstrates better-designed health-sector interventions. Narrowing the gap with the southern states must be set as a top priority in health interventions to move faster on the downward trajectory. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma attributes the state’s spectacular achievement to “thousands of doctors, nurses, ASHA workers, health officials and frontline workers” and says that they kept working silently, tirelessly and with compassion year after year across the state. Sustaining the current momentum will be crucial for Assam to remain on track and to meet the WHO mandate. This calls for the state continuing to focus on priorities set by the state government on improvement in health infrastructure, strengthening human resources in the health sector, incentivising the ASHA workers, improved health service delivery and social sector programmes. Adequate budgetary allocations, smooth fund flow for these interventions and judicious, timely utilisation will be essential to take the achievements of brining down MMR to the next level towards building a healthy society. Improving health services delivery during annual floods, especially for pregnant women displaced by flood and erosion, remains essential to reducing preventable maternal deaths and continuity of care. Economic empowerment of women plays a crucial role in improving nutritional support to pregnant women, and therefore, women achieving financial autonomy through flagship government schemes and livelihood interventions need to be accorded top priority. A whole-of-government approach is necessary to empower women economically so that MMR interventions do not remain a mere health intervention but a coordinated effort across all line departments to make women central stakeholders in economic activities of the household, community and the entire state. Empowered women often motivate peers to act early on ASHA workers’ guidance, ensuring timely check-ups and choosing institutional deliveries. The rise in institutional deliveries has been one of the most decisive drivers behind Assam’s declining MMR and ASHA workers remaining motivated to ensure that every pregnant woman in her jurisdiction reaches the healthcare facility for safe delivery if the MMR numbers are to be continuously improved and sustained. ASHA workers identifying risk conditions such as anaemia, hypertension, and gestational diabetes, as well as other risk conditions, and tracking and prioritising the high-risk women among them remain pivotal to healthcare institutions attending to complications with urgent attention and eliminating maternal death risks. Assam can improve its MMR targets only when district healthcare systems are equally strong, ensuring last-mile delivery in respect of every pregnant woman, as uneven capacity at the district and sub-division levels has the potential to create pockets of preventable maternal health risks. Continuous improvement in girls’ education and curbing child marriage to prevent underage pregnancy are critical social interventions for the state that must continue to receive administrative priority. While celebrating the watershed shift in MMR reduction, the state cannot afford to lose sight of the fact that the real challenge lies in ensuring that there is no laxity in implementation of plans and programmes aimed at improving its health indicators.