On Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel's instructions, blankets are being distributed to pregnant and lactating mothers through Anganwadi centres to protect infants and young children in forest areas from malnutrition and pneumonia.
Several multi-level measures are being taken to eradicate malnutrition from Chhattisgarh, an official communication said on Wednesday. In the same sequence, 15,000 blankets are being distributed to the mothers of all children in the 0-6 age group in all 556 Anganwadi centres of Narayanpur district. Besides, parents are being informed about Kangaroo Mother Care for proper development of children and to protect them from cold. A provision of Rs 71 lakhs has been made under the District Mineral Trust Fund (DMF) for the blanket distribution. Narayanpur district, carved out of Bastart in 2007, is part of Dandakaranya forest area. Surrounded by dense forests and rivers, many tribes like Gond, Halbi, Maria, Muria reside in the area.
Starting from the first week of June till the end of winter, the weather in the region gets quite cold. Due to the extreme cold, most children suffer from seasonal diseases like cold and flu.