Bhubaneswar: More than 16 million children and women in Odisha will get deworming doses during a month-long drive which will be launched February 10 across the state, a health official said Wednesday.
The Directorate of Family Welfare, in collaboration with UNICEF, will launch the drive to improve the health and nutritional status of children and women in Odisha.
Speaking to reporters here, Family Welfare Director Sanjukta Sahoo said that children and young women will receive age-appropriate Albendazole (suspension or tablets) at schools and Anganwadi centres from teachers, Anganwadi workers, and ASHA workers during the National Deworming Day (NDD) campaign.
Simultaneously, children aged between 9-60 months will receive age-appropriate Vitamin A doses at routine immunisation sites and special Village Health and Nutrition Days (VHSNDs) throughout February to boost immunity and prevent childhood blindness, she said.
She said the campaign will be implemented in all schools and Anganwadi centres in Odisha, including private schools, playschools, childcare institutions, and other academic institutions.
Approximately 1.46 crore children and 17.73 lakh women of reproductive age (who are not pregnant or lactating) are expected to benefit from the NDD, Smrutijit Patnaik, joint director, Nutrition.
The initiative will be fully covered in 24 districts while in the remaining six districts, the drive will be undertaken in the blocks where Lymphatic Filariasis-Mass Drug Administration (LF-MDA) will not be held, Patnaik said.
PTI
