About 75 per cent of people in 10 grama panchayats in Coimbatore are now free of anaemia, a widespread condition found in rural parts of Tamil Nadu. The improvement is following an initiative by Isha Foundation in association with the Ministry of AYUSH.
Health status of villagers monitored at a special camp
Coimbatore:
The remarkable feat was achieved in 10 ‘grama panchayats’ including Ikkaraipoluvampatti, Narasipuram, Thevarayapuram, Perur and Chettipalayam in Coimbatore outskirts.
“About 489 of the 654 people diagnosed with the condition three years ago, have now recovered – a 75 per cent recovery rate. The AYUSH Ministry’s target of 70 per cent recovery has been surpassed in these ten panchayats,” said a statement.
Villagers have been celebrating this unique heartwarming achievement over the last one week by organising celebratory events, when drumstick and papaya saplings were distributed to recovered patients to symbolise healthy food choices.
The Isha Foundation in association with the Ministry of AYUSH launched ‘AYUSH — Isha Organic Health System’ in 2017. Ten grama panchayats with 49 villages were included in the project.
As part of the project, traditional medicines recommended by the Ministry of AYUSH were distributed door to door, haemoglobin levels were monitored regularly, and awareness programs were conducted
reaching out to 10,000 people.
Besides, ‘Ayush Sevak’ was appointed in every village to provide traditional medicines to people and free yoga camps were held.
According to the 2020 Global Nutrition Report, 50 per cent of women in the reproductive age (one in two women) are found to be anaemic.
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