The State health and education departments are all geared up to make the National Deworming Day a success. All children between the age group 1 to 19 would be administered ‘Albendazol’ the anti helminthic drug on Wednesday. The health department is the nodal agency for the successful implementation of the objectives of the national deworming day. On Tuesday the senior health department officials were seen busy coordinating with the officers of district administration and education department for the programme.
The Director General (DG), health services, Dr Kusum Narriyal said that children between the ages I – 2 would be given half tablet while children between age 2 to 19 would be administered one tablet. She said that Albendazole is a safe drug which helps in effective deworming.
The health department officials claimed that the medicines have reached their respective destinations. The state has received a consignment of 20 lakh medicines for the programme. The services of teachers, ANMs, ASHAs and Angawadi workers would be taken for administering the drug. The primary education director Seema Jaunsari said that the department has conducted a training of all the teachers for the drive and the medicines have reached to all the schools.
In Dehradun district 202200 children would be administered the tablet in 1907 Anaganwadi centres and 1769 schools on Wednesday.
The helminthic worms are the cause of malnurtion and retarded growth in a large number of children. In middle Himalayan region the percentage of helminthic infection is found to be as high as 30 percent.
The helminths are the parasites that absorb nutrition from the body tissues and induce malnutrition which adversely affect growth of body and apart from physical growth the worm also affects mental growth of the individual. The medical experts are of the view that deworming helps in increasing attendance of students’ upto 25 per cent in the schools.
As in very small number of cases minor side effects like headache, nausea and vomiting are reported, the health department has appointed a nodal officer in every district to deal promptly with such cases. However as a precautionary measure the drug would not be given to sick children.
A data of such children would be made and the drug would be given to them when they become fit. The left out children would be given medicine on a mop up day which is scheduled on February 15.