Nayagarh: Nagada in Jajpur district had once grabbed headlines in the front pages of newspapers for malnutrition deaths and now, much to everyone’s dismay, a similar situation has appeared in Nayagarh, a report said.
According to the report, 728 children have been affected by malnutrition over the last 28 months in the district although the government is trying to curb moderate malnutrition rates across the state.
Malnutrition and resultant deaths have been a concern for experts and the government. It also puts a question mark on the effectiveness of programmes aimed at curbing malnutrition.
The district has two nutrition rehabilitation centres – one on the premises of the district headquarters hospital and the other at the Khandapara community health centre – to deal with the malnutrition of children.
The service area of the Nayagarh NRC includes Nayagarh, Odagan, Ranpur and Dasapalla blocks while the second NRC provides service to the malnourished kids of Khandapada, Bhapur and Gania blocks.
As per data, 191 malnourished kids were treated at the Nayagarh NRC in 2017-18, 196 in 2018-19 and 29 in 2019 till date.
Similarly, the Khandapara NRC has provided treatment to 102 kids in 2017-18, 143 in 2018-19 and 67 in 2019.
Usually, if kids aged between six months and five years are found to be malnourished then they are admitted to the NRCs. Members of the Rashtriya Bal Swasthya team visit schools and villages to identify malnourished children.
Anganwadi workers, ASHAs and ANMs are also supposed to identify such cases. However, there are allegations that there is utter negligence on the part of persons responsible for detecting malnutrition in children.
There are clear symptoms using which malnutrition can be detected. Then the kids are admitted to NRCs where they are given nutritious food with the help of nutrition counsellors to gain weight for 15 to 20 days. These kids are supposed to check their health at the NRCs once in 15 or 30 days.
After the kids are admitted to NRCs, their guardians are paid Rs 100 each to buy nutritious food. Besides, Rs 100 is also paid to a guardian for conveyance during the check-ups of kids at NRCs.
Experts and social activists have expressed concern over malnutrition in the district.
Gayatri Panda, a nutrition counsellor at Nayagarh NRC, said many kids in Dasapalla and Gania are malnourished as their mothers are not conscious about the health of their kids. The mothers do not feed their kids rightly and in time, she added.
PNN