The UT Administration on Thursday directed the officials concerned to cover out-of-school boys and students of private schools under the WIFS-Blue Iron Tablet Implementation programme
A review meeting regarding WIFS-Blue Iron Tablet Implementation programme under the chairpersonship of KK Sharma, Adviser to UT Administrator was held on Thursday here. Sharma emphasised that the children being admitted in private schools from the poor families should be tracked properly for their needs and health care. “In order to reduce malnutrition various policy makers must sit together regarding the plans of employment, food availability, fuel availability etc since many parents substitute mid day meal as the regular home meal due to various reasons,” he said.
“The role of Social Welfare department needs to be strengthened. Under age marriages and pregnancies needs to be checked stringently since these are the indirect factors affecting the maternal and the child deaths, he added.
Notably, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has started “SOlID BANO INDIA- WIFS- Blue (Weekly iron and folic acid supplementation) campaign” to reduce the prevalence and severity of anaemia due to iron folic acid deficiency.
Sharma advised that a strict check should be done for sale of abortifacients illegally. He also appreciated that Chandigarh has achieved maternal mortality ratio of 60.8, which is least in the country. However, since the surveys were not conducted by GOI, UT Chandigarh must write to statistical division, MoHFW to authenticate the data, said Sharma.
During the meeting, Secretary Health Anil Kumar apprised that the data pertaining to maternal and infant deaths in UT Chandigarh was not sample based but actual absolute numbers and therefore the report was more reliable. The reduction in MMR has been 53 points in just one year.
All over the country, anaemia levels ranges from 30 per cent to 68 per cent in the age group of 15-19 years as per NFHS-III. However, in UT Chandigarh, as per the available data, anaemia amongst the school children and at the Anganwadi level in Chandigarh ranges from 15.93 per cent to 16 per cent as every child is examined. The rates may be less since Red Iron Tablets have been distributed in the schools on regular basis in the previous years before the WIFS Blue Programme was started, informed UT officials at the meeting.
Sharma said that a request can be made to authorities at ISB, Mohali for deputing their students for the needful.
Reviewing the problems being faced at GMCH-32, PGIMER, and GMSH-16, the Adviser said, “Since the doctors at these institutes are over burdened especially in the emergency care area, all the doctors working under Municipal Corporation and Police Hospital should be put on duty by rotation in GMSH-16 and their ACR should be reviewed by the Director Health Services mandatorily.”
Sharma said that the issues of transgender should be taken up seriously by UT Chandigarh and their good practices regarding the confidence in themselves should be explored for inclusion in curriculum in management schools.