Bhubaneswar: In a major push to meet the national target of eliminating lymphatic filariasis by 2027, the state government will conduct a Mass Drug Administration (MDA) programme from February 10 to 19, across six implementation units in five districts.
At a high-level state coordination committee meeting, chaired by Health and Family Welfare department Commissioner-cum-Secretary Aswathy S, it was decided that the drive will cover two units in Bolangir and one unit each in Dhenkanal, Bargarh, Jajpur and Ganjam.
The meeting was attended by NHM Mission Director Brunda D, OSMCL MD Poma Tudu, Public Health Special Secretary Jitendra Mohan Bebortha, senior officials from the Health department, representatives of Women and Child Development, School and Mass Education, Housing and Urban Development, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water departments, and development partners including WHO, PCI and GHS.
Officials from four government medical colleges and ICMR-Bhubaneswar also participated. Public Health Director Nilakantha Mishra presented the current filariasis situation and outlined the rigorous plan for the February drive, stressing the importance of inter-departmental coordination. Calling for intensified efforts, Aswathy S said, “Social mobilisation and supervised drug consumption are critical to overcome absenteeism and drug refusal.
All departments must work together to ensure maximum coverage.” Brunda D emphasised strengthened monitoring, especially in high-risk areas with low coverage and high microfilaria rates. The meeting concluded with a collective resolve to prioritise the programme and keep Odisha on track to achieve filariasis elimination by 2027.
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