Patna: Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil
Kumar Modi today called for measures to control population
growth to ensure faster development of the economically
backward state.
Bihar has a population growth rate of 3.9 per cent
against 1.7 per cent in the states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala,
Modi told a seminar.
Modi emphasized on the need for various measures to
bring under control the population growth rate in Bihar in
order to ensure its economic development and said that an
awareness campaign about family planning must be carried out
among the people.
Regretting shortage of hospitals and medical colleges, he
said that the state government was planning to set up medical
colleges in Pawapuri, Betiah, Madhepura and Bihta near the
state capital and another college for paramedic courses in
Patna.
Modi, however, said immunization of children had
increased considerably with 66.61 per cent being immunized
against the national ratio of 61 pc. The figure was 18.8 per
cent in 2005 in Bihar before NDA came to power, he said.
Delivery of new-borns in hospitals too had increased at Rs
15 lakh in 2010-11 as against 1.12 in 2006-7, Modi said.
The state government has proposed to distribute health
cards among about 3.41 crore children under the health
guarantee scheme, he said.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, September 25, 2011, 19:11