Concern over high infant mortality rate

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 29. Maternal and infant mortality is high in Andhra Pradesh though it has achieved spectacular results in propagating the small family norm, according to the Commissioner of Family Welfare, Mrs. Neelam Sawhney.

About a lakh of children die out of 18 lakh children born every year and even the morbidity among the infants was not under control, she said in her address to Polio Plus Workshop organised by the Rotary Club of Hyderabad on Saturday.

She called for active participation by Rotary and other voluntary organisations in the mass immunisation programme of the Government. Last year about 105 lakh children in the age group of 0-5 years were immunised and about five personnel were involved in this programme, she explained.

The State Government was aiming at polio eradication through different strategies like universal immunisation programme which was launched in 1985, nation-wide mass immunisation programme, surveillance programme and the pulse polio immunisation programme launched in 1995, she explained.

Mrs. Sawhney said the pulse polio activity was aimed at eradicating the virus completely. As many as 1,126 cases were reported in 1999 all over India and the figure dropped to 269 in 2000. But no case was reported in Andhra Pradesh last year and till now this year. But in the surveillance work, one case was reported in the bordering areas of Karnataka.

Kerala reported one case last year after ``nil'' report in the previous three years. The States were told that there should be no dilution in the programme at the field level, she said.

The Family Welfare Commissioner said about 53,000 booths would be set up for the intensive immunisation programme this year and asked the Rotary Club to handle at least 300 to 400 booths.

Dr. Jayashree Desai, Director, District Polio Plus Committee, Mr. J.A.S. Giri, Chairman, District Polio Plus Workshop, Mr. V. Shiv Swamy, president of the club, and others spoke.

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