Family planning poor in 5 blocks: Collector

Trichy: District collector K Rajamani here on Friday, said that five revenue blocks in Trichy district have not shown good progress in terms of population control due to lack of awareness regarding family planning.
Rajamani was speaking at a community baby shower ceremony, which was conducted by Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) for 502 expectant mothers at KAP Viswanatham Government Medical College.Presiding over the function, the collector spoke about how important it was for expectant mothers to discuss family planning with their husbands so that population control was done in an effective manner. “In Trichy district, Marungapuri, Manapparai, Thottiyam, T Pettai and Vaiyampatti haven’t shown big progress in terms of family planning due to poor awareness regarding it,” he said.
According to sources from the district family welfare department, Higher Order Birth (HOB) is high in the above-mentioned blocks and steps were being taken to promote contraception and create awareness about family planning in these areas. HOB refers to more than two children in a family. According to the statistics from last year, the overall HOB percentage in Trichy district was 7.1%, while in the five blocks, it was said to be around 10%. The HOB of the state was said to be 7.2%.
The collector also said that expectant mothers in the district have hugely benefited through the Dr Muthulakshmi Reddy Maternity Benefit Scheme. “This scheme covered a total of 23,196 beneficiaries last year and this year it has already benefited 11,575 expectant mothers. Moreover, while a total of Rs 12,000/- was given in instalments for the beneficiaries till last year, it has been increased to Rs 18,000/- now,” he added. Around 2,000 expectant mothers took part and received several gifts at the community baby shower events conducted across Trichy district on Friday.