Shillong, October 25: The Government of Meghalaya under the Health & Family Welfare and National Health Mission is launching a fixed one-day school based program to ensure intensive deworming coverage and targeted outreach in all districts on 26th October, 2017. For those children who could not be dewormed on Deworming Day, they will be dewormed on mop-up day on 31st October, 2017.
Deworming Tablets – Albendazole – will be given free of cost to all children in the age group of 1 to 19 years of age in Government Schools and Government aided Schools and in Anganwadi Centers for out-of-school children. Children at the age group of 1-2 years are given half a tablet of Albendazole (400mg), and above the age of 2 years are given 1 full tablet of Albendazole (400mg) to chew.
National Deworming Day is a groundbreaking initiative focused on reducing the threat of parasitic worm infestations, a widespread health issue affecting over 241 children in India alone. India has the highest burden of soil-transmitted helminths – parasitic worms – in the world.
Worm infestations can cause anemia, malnourishment and impaired mental and physical development; and may cause a serious threat to children’s health, education and productivity. The timely, high quality, mass-based deworming programme for children of pre-school and school age children in India will dramatically reduce the harm caused by parasitic worm infections in millions of children in India.
The State Health Department and the National Health Mission urges all the parents of children in the age group of 1 to 19 years who have not been dewormed to kindly come forward and avail the services provided for them.
