To improve nutrition and health status and bridge gaps in access to healthcare among primitive tribes of Malkangiri district, the Atmashakti Trust and its ally Shramajeebee Sangathan launched a malnutrition-free village project in Podia block.
The project, which will cover 8,000 households in the block, aims to provide essential preventive medicines to the community through the trained village-based Swasthya Sathi (health worker).
“Our focus would be awareness building, strengthening local healthcare institutions, disease prevention, bringing behavioural changes among communities, promoting backyard kitchen gardens in project villages and linking them with the nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive Government schemes through village health committees and form health kits in project villages,'' said Podia block president of the Sangathan, Shanti Beka, who also attended the launching event. "Poor and improper dietary habits, social norms, perceived practices and lack of road infrastructure have been the potential barriers to fight malnutrition.
The health infrastructure in the district is also woefully inadequate. Therefore, we started the much-needed intervention which is a cost-effective and community-owned healthcare model with a focus on integrated behaviour change communication,” said executive trustee, Atmashakti Trust, Ruchi Kashyap.
Over the last few years, the Odisha Government has made stirring jumps in improving health and nutrition indicators. Odisha is also the first Indian State to have a specific nutrition budget in the country. Notably, malnutrition is as high as 51.8% in Malkangiri. The Annual Health Survey Report 2014 also reveals that 7 out of 10 children in the district are underweight.