Every second woman of reproductive age inMadhya Pradeshis anaemic, but the has failed to utilise over 40% of the funds allotted to it under the ‘Anaemia Mukt Bharat’ scheme in the last three fiscals.
This shocking data comes from a reply of the Health ministry in Rajya Sabha in the Budget session.
Minister of state (MoS) for health and family welfare, Dr Bharti Pawar, informed the House that 52.9% of pregnant Women aged (15-49) were anaemic in MP. So are over 58% adolescent girls, aged 15-19, according to National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS) figures, said the MoS.
Anaemia has risen by 5% among adolescent girls in the state, shows a comparison of NFHS-4 and -5 data. “This is a pan-India feature. It is more because of dietary habits, where more carbohydrate-rich foods are consumed along with unhealthy foods.
NFHS-5 figures show only 31% of pregnant women have taken their full course of iron pills.
The government is going to launch a drive to provide iron tablets to non-pregnant women of reproductive age, to be taken once a week, for a year, to curb anaemia.