FOR BETTER HEALTHCARE: Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy releasing the chart of `Andhra Pradesh-Progress in Immunisation Performance' in Hyderabad on Tuesday. — PHOTO: P.V.Sivakumar

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy has said that the State Government is in favour of raising the minimum age of marriage to bring about a qualitative change in the lives of couples.

The Government wants to prevent marriages till the age of 21 for women and 25 for men, he stated at a function here on Tuesday to celebrate the successful implementation of Children's Vaccine Programme and Immunisation - a partnership project between the State Government and Programme for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH).

Dr. Reddy specifically referred to the case of Congress MLA from Warangal Konda Surekha while discussing the practical problems in implementing enhanced age limit for marriages. He said the MLA wanted to marry off her daughter who was just 16 years old and joined first year of MBBS recently. She was under duress to perform the marriage because the groom-to-be, who was among her relatives, had threatened to look for another match if the ceremony was performed immediately.

Incentives

Calling for a change in the social outlook towards marriages, the Chief Minister said the Government was already giving incentives and scholarships to promote their postponement.

Dr. Reddy said that budgetary support for health sector and recruitment of doctors were the biggest constraints of the Government in improving health care. The recruitment drive had failed to get enough doctors. Even those who had joined were reluctant to serve in rural areas, as they wanted to impart good education for their children in towns and cities.

Charge denied

Health Minister K. Rosaiah, denied that the Government had neglected the health sector while giving a thrust to irrigation. It was trying its best to bring down the infant mortality rate. C.B.S. Venkataramana, Commissioner, Family Welfare, and Prasanna Kumar Hota, former Union Health Secretary, spoke.

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