Hyderabad, July 13 (RAHNUMA): Minister for Health Damodar Rajanarasimha on Monday launched the statewide distribution of Albendazole tablets to prevent intestinal worm infections among children.
The programme was inaugurated at the Raj Bhavan Government High School in Hyderabad, where the Minister personally administered the tablets to students.
Addressing the gathering, the Minister appealed to parents to ensure that every child between 1 and 19 years of age receives the Albendazole tablet. He said intestinal worm infections can lead to anaemia, malnutrition, stunted growth and weight loss in children, adversely affecting their health and academic performance.
The Minister noted that even when worm infections are not visibly apparent, they can significantly impact a child’s overall well-being. Therefore, he urged parents to cooperate fully with the deworming drive being conducted across government and private schools, junior colleges and Anganwadi centres throughout the State.
Rajanarasimha explained that deworming helps eliminate intestinal worms, improves children’s health, enables better absorption of nutrients from food, strengthens immunity and enhances concentration and learning ability.
He stressed that the National Deworming Programme does not end with administering tablets alone. Health department officials were instructed to create awareness among children and parents about maintaining personal and environmental hygiene, washing hands with soap, using safe drinking water, and thoroughly washing fruits and vegetables before consumption.
The programme is being implemented by the Health department in coordination with the Education department and the Women and Child Welfare department.
A total of 96,81,855 children and students aged between 1 and 19 years across Telangana will receive Albendazole tablets through government and private schools, junior colleges and Anganwadi centres.
Children who are unable to receive the tablet on the scheduled day for any reason will be covered during a mop-up round on July 20.
MLA Danam Nagender, MLC Addanki Dayakar, Health Department Principal Secretary Dr. Christina Z. Chongthu, Health and Family Welfare Commissioner Dr. Sangeetha Satyanarayana, Hyderabad DMHO Dr. P. Srinivas, and others participated in the event.
