Bhubaneswar: Health & Family Welfare and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Niranjan Pujari inaugurated the State Vaccine Store at Nilandri Vihar, Monday.
Speaking on the occasion, Pujari said that the state government has left no stone unturned to achieve the goal of ‘Sustha Odisha, Sukhi Odisha’ by providing quality healthcare services to the people. He informed that the full immunisation coverage in the state is 90.5 per cent as per National Family Health Survey 5 Report, which is highest among all states in the country. On this occasion, a booklet on ensuring quality vaccine supply chain under Universal Immunisation Program (UIP) was released by the minister and other dignitaries.
The Commissioner-cumSecretary, Health & FW Department, Shalini Pandit, said that immunisation has significant contribution to the reduction of mortality among children less than five years of age. There has been 50 point decline in under-five mortality in the state from 89 (in 2008) to 39 (in 2020) as per SRS Report, she informed. The Chief of Field Office, Unicef, Odisha William Hanlon Jr. told that the state has made significant progress in immunisation coverage as per NFHS 5 report and Unicef is committed to providing support for further strengthening of health services. The Mission Director, National Health Mission,(NHM) Odisha Brundha D, said that the new store has been constructed under NHM PIP with budget of Rs 123.25 lakh and this store has adequate capacity for storage of vaccines and logistics. The Family Welfare Director Bijaya Kumar Panigrahy said that the Cold Chain & Vaccine Management system of Odisha is very much robust with adequate infrastructure and manpower. On the occasion, Minister also inaugurated two mobile Blood Collection Vans and a new offset printing press of the Department of Health & Family Welfare at Kharvel Nagar, UnitIII, Bhubaneswar.
ARINDAM GANGULY, OP