Vitamin A plus campaign Saturday

Around 2.25 crore children, aged between six months and five years, will be fed Vitamin A plus capsules under a national campaign on August 5. 

State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Zahid Maleque announced this at a press briefing at the secretariat this morning, said a press release of the ministry today.

Children, aged between six and 11 months, will be given the blue-coloured high-powered Vitamin A capsules, while children, aged between 12 to 59 months, will receive the red-coloured ones.

Children will be fed the capsule around 120,000 permanent health centres and 20,000 mobile centres throughout the country, State Minister Maleque said.

The mobile centres will be set up at bus stands, railway stations, launch terminals, airports, ferry terminals, bridge toll centres and kheya ghats, and these will remain open from 8:00am to 4:00pm to make sure that all children are fed the capsules, he said.

"At least two well-trained volunteers will work at each centre to make the campaign a success,'' he said adding that the rate of children's night-blindness in the country has come down below one percent following the distribution of Vitamin A plus capsules regularly.