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The Government of India implements the Anaemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) strategy under POSHAN Abhiyaan with the target for reducing anaemia in the six population groups – Children (6-59 months), Children (5-9 years), Adolescents girls and boys (10-19 years), Pregnant women, Lactating women and Women of Reproductive Age (WRA) group (15-49 years) in life cycle approach. Some of the major interventions by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) to address anaemia under AMB include:
- Prophylactic Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation.
- Deworming.
- Intensified year-round Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) Campaign and delayed cord clamping.
- Testing of anaemia using digital methods and point of care treatment.
- Addressing non-nutritional causes of anaemia in endemic pockets with a special focus on malaria, hemoglobinopathies and fluorosis.
- Convergence and coordination with line department and other ministries.
- Engaging National Centre of Excellence and Advanced Research on Anaemia Control for capacity building of health care providers.
- Monitoring progress in States/UTs using Anaemia Mukt Bharat Dashboard.
As per the fifth round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), conducted by MoHFW during the year 2019-21, the prevalence of anaemia among women age 15-49 is 57.0 percent as compared to 53.1 percent in NFHS-4, (2015-16). However, thirteen (13) States/UTs namely Andhra Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Island, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Lakshadweep, Meghalaya, NCT of Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have reported decline in prevalence of anaemia among women age 15-49 in NFHS-5 as compared to NFHS-4.
The Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar stated this in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.
