The Hindu : Front Page : Sharp fall in infant mortality rate in Karur

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Feb 10, 2006

Front Page

Front Page

Sharp fall in infant mortality rate in Karur

L. Renganathan

Sustained information education campaign on family planning yielding results

KARUR: Sustained information dissemination among the masses and infrastructure development in medical establishments have helped in bringing down the infant mortality rate (IMR) in the district.

According to Health and Family Welfare Department sources, the Karur and Kulithalai headquarters hospitals have been identified under the Tamil Nadu Health System Project that provides for round-the-clock speciality services to ensure infant and maternal mortality during delivery. Infrastructure is being developed in them to function as Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and New Born Care centres for which the ultra modern CTG monitor costing Rs. 4.5 lakhs has been established.

People's movement

Under the Reproductive Child Health Programme information dissemination and awareness campaign among the masses, especially those in rural areas, is being organised. Thankfully, with proper coordination among the officials and the beneficiaries, the programme is turning into a people's movement in the district, officials say.

Also, six primary health centres, four government hospitals and 25 designated private hospitals in the district have been listed as family planning centres.

Moreover, the sustained information education campaign on family planning has started yielding results. Couples' going in for sterilization have increased in the district considerably.

In fact, Karur district ranks fifth in the State in the case of sterilisation of couples with one child and seventh in the State in case of those preferring the family planning procedure after two children.

For a district where child marriages and such other social practices constantly lurk, this showing is considered a good augury.

All these efforts on the education and improvement of infrastructure front, has resulted in the IMR coming down drastically from around 38 in 1991 to 33.8 now.

Incidentally the birth rate too has come down appreciably from 19 in 1991 to 16.8 now, which again shows that the health delivery system is on target in the district.

Incidentally, the female literacy rate in Karur district is just 56.8.

To improve that, the Adult and Continuing Education, Arivoli Iyakkam and the Literacy for All campaign are being fine-tuned.

And with that, it is hoped family planning awareness too would receive a shot in the arm in the days to come, say the Health department authorities here.

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