Bhubaneswar: Odisha Health and Family Welfare Minister Naba Kishore Das has said that the State government is working towards making the state malaria free in five more years. If achieved, Odisha will become the first state in the country to get the coveted tag.
Launching the Malaria Action Coalition, a group of organisations working towards malaria elimination, Das stressed on commitment to control Malaria in the state.
“Our state has made great progress in reducing malaria burden by more than 80% since 2017. We will eliminate the disease within five years and become the first state in India to become malaria-free,” he said.
Das lauded the role of 47,000 ASHA workers in bringing down the number of malaria cases in the state. “They have worked at the village level to detect and treat malaria in communities and help adopt preventive habits. There were 3.52 lakh malaria cases in 2017 but it came down to 66,000 last year and 22,000 this year till August end. We are trying to reduce the cases further,” the minister added.
As things stand, Odisha accounts for approximately 40 per cent of all malaria cases in the country.
