Need for reproductive health- Problems and strategies

India is amongst the first few countries in the world to initiate the ‘Family planning programme’ since 1951 and is periodically assessed every decade. These programmes are popularly named as ‘Reproductive and Child Health Care (RCH). Major tasks carried out under these programmes are:

• Creating awareness and providing medical assistance to build a healthy society.

• Introducing sex education in schools to provide information about adolescence and adolescence related changes.

• Educating couples and those in the marriageable age groups about the available birth control methods and family planning norms.

• Creating awareness about care for pregnant women, post-natal care of mother and child and the importance of breast feeding.

• Encouraging and supporting governmental and non-governmental agencies to identify new methods and/or to improve upon the existing methods of birth control.

Do You Know 

Globally, about 800 women die every day of preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth; 20 per cent of these women are from India. Similarly India's infant mortality rate was 44 per 1,000 live. Although, India has witnessed dramatic growth over the last two decades, maternal mortality still remains high as in comparison to many developing nations. **-source:-** -http://unicef.in-  

Health care programmes such as massive child immunization, supply of nutritional food to the pregnant women, Janani Suraksha Yojana, Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram, RMNCH+A approach (an integrated approach for reproductive, maternal, new born, child and adolescent health), Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan, etc., are taken up at the national level by the Government of India.