Kalyan Singh Kothari is currently a freelance journalist, accredited by the Government of Rajasthan, Jaipur. A veteran in the field, he has 30 years of experience as reporter/ war correspondent/ content writer/ journalist/ editor for various newspapers and publications, and still continues to work on journalistic assignments for UNICEF-Rajasthan, and various other national and international organizations, contributing developmental grassroots stories and features from Rajasthan.
An efficient integration of health, nutrition and water and sanitation interventions to improve the quality of life of the rural populace was on display during the visit of two senior functionaries of “Save the Children” to a couple of villages in the tribal-dominated Banswara district in southern Rajasthan on Monday, i.e., 3 May 2010.
Braving the scorching heat of May, “Save the Children” Chairman, Mr. Harpal Singh, who is also head of the Fortis Health Care, New Delhi, and Save the Children’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Thomas Chandy, interacted with a large number of villagers to get the first-hand information about the health and nutrition scenario at the grassroots.
Save the Children – a leading advocacy group working for protection of children’s rights – has launched an ambitious Aapno Swasthya Aapne Haath (Our Health in Our Hands) programme in three districts of Rajasthan for catalyzing community structures to improve health and nutrition outcomes for children below five years of age.
Through this project started in 2009, Save the Children proposes to decrease the newborn and child mortality and child malnutrition by increasing access and availability of quality health services, improving health practices and enhancing the capacities of various stakeholders. It expects to make a contribution in reducing under-five mortality and malnutrition rates even beyond the project’s life by ensuring sustained healthy behavioural practices.
The project has targeted three of the neediest districts of Rajasthan – Banswara, Churu and Tonk – to benefit pregnant mothers, lactating mothers, newborns, infants, and children up to the age of five years. The number of direct and indirect beneficiaries is estimated to be 1.20 lakh in 120 villages of three districts.
In Banswara, Save the Children has partnered with the Voluntary Association of Agriculture General Development Health and Reconstruction Alliance (VAAGDHARA), working to create socially just, technologically improved and empowered rural communities and taking development to the most marginalized groups of the society. VAAGDHARA is responsible for direct implementation of this Pepsi Co integrated project in the district.
The intervention site in Banswara district is Ghatol block covering 60 villages. Garnavat and Himmat Singh Ka Gadha were the prominent among the villages visited by the two leading functionaries of Save the Children. The VAAGDHARA Secretary, Mr. Jayesh Joshi, accompanied the two dignitaries.
Members of the Men’s Health Committee, Women’s Health Committee and Baal Panchayat welcomed the guests with beating of drums and garlanding at Garnavat village. Community health worker, Ms. Tulsi Devi, described the significant progress in sanitary practices in the villages ever since the project was launched.
Mr. Harpal Singh evinced a keen interest in getting information about the use of newly-built toilets in houses, maintenance of cleanliness around hand-pumps and the habit for personal hygiene. He was happy to note that awareness had been generated for total immunization, hand-washing, manufacturing vermin compost and developing kitchen gardens in houses and called upon the villagers to maintain their positive spirit in future.
During the visit to Himmat Singh Ka Gadha village, the two dignitaries visited the Anganwadi centre to interact with workers and beneficiaries and also saw child-friendly toilets and new hand-pump installations with ground water recharge system. While Mr. Chandy asked for details of menu of food served at Anganwadi centre, Mr. Joshi provided details of utilization of the project by the villagers and value addition to the community life.
Significantly, all the key activities for health, nutrition, water and sanitation in the target villages are being undertaken by VAAGDHARA. The organization undertakes repair and installation of hand pumps and construction of toilets. The organization is also working closely with the women self-help groups and support groups to create awareness on water and sanitation issues.
The women’s support group members regularly organize mass cleaning activities at the village level. They clean the village path, school going path and the surroundings of community drinking water places.
The project being implemented in the remote villages of Banswara district assumes significance in view of the alarming health and nutrition profile in the country. Less than half (44 per cent) of children of 12 to 23 months are fully vaccinated against the six major childhood illnesses. According to the World Health Organization’s statistics for 2007, the infant mortality rate in India is 56/1000 live births and the neonatal mortality is 39/1000 live births. That translates into almost one in every three babies in the world who die before they are four weeks old in India.
Each year 27 million pregnancies take place in the country with only 33 per cent of women accessing the government health services for antenatal care. Only 16 percent of pregnant women have at least three visits for antenatal care. Almost half (44 percent) of all children under five are stunted (measured by low height for age, an indicator of chronic malnutrition) and 23 percent of children are wasted (as measured by weight for height, an indicator of acute malnutrition).
Exclusive breastfeeding and complementary feeding of children remain significant challenges. Over half of all women are anaemic, as are 70 per cent of children of 6 to 59 months of age. About 30 per cent of children are born with low birth weight, a condition that contributes to under nutrition later in life.
The project has proved to be a boon for the backward region of Banswara district. It has increased access to quality services, improved the awareness and acceptance of key health practices and enhanced the capacities of public health outreach workers, besides improving the quality of life of children below the age of five.
