Govt Sanctioned Rs 28 cr Under NRHM For UP To Fight Encephalitis
The Central government has sanctioned an additional budget of approximately Rs 28 crore for Uttar Pradesh under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), to fight encephalitis in nine affected districts.
The fund will be used to build intensive care units as well as for creating awareness among people regarding the disease.
The proposal for these ICUs was sent by the state government following the visit of Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad last month to encephalitis-hit Gorakhpur and Siddharthanagar. The Centre sanctioned the budget last week.
Apart from this, the encephalitis hit region has already got a budget of Rs 5 crore from the Centre for a new encephalitis ward, four ventilators and human resources for the pediatric department of Baba Raghav Das Medical College, Gorakhpur. This proposal was sent by the state government following the visit of Chief Secretary Anoop Mishra to Gorakhpur in September. After Azad’s visit, a Group of Ministers headed by the health minister himself has also been formed at the Centre to come up with an encephalitis eradication programme.
In the proposal sent by the state this time, the Mayawati government had proposed establishment of intensive care units in district hospitals of nine affected districts. “We have proposed ICUs in the district hospitals of all the districts of Gorakhpur and Basti Division as well as Gonda and Lakhimpur Kheri districts, as these areas are affected by Acute Encephalitis Syndrom,” said Dr Ramji Lal, Director General Medical and Health, Uttar Pradesh.
With the funds sanctioned by the Centre, the ICUs will be established in district hospitals of Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar, Siddharthnagar, Deoria, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Maharajganj, Gonda and Lakhimpur Kheri. A budget of Rs 23.1 crore has been sanctioned for the ICUs and will include funds for life saving equipment like ventilators.
As of now, in the entire region, only the BRD Medical College has ventilator and ICU facility for AES patients.
The Director General said that ICUs in district hospitals will help ease the pressure from the BRD Medical College and patients will also get facility near their home.
Apart from the establishment of ICUs, the Centre has also sanctioned Rs 4.8 crore for various information, education and communication activities in these nine districts.
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