Students of College of Arts and Crafts, Patna, used their skill in making posters on Tuesday to stress the importance of breastfeeding.

On the final day of the World Breastfeeding Week, non-government organisation Adhar Mahila Vikas Swawalambi Sahkari Samiti held a poster competition on the premises of the art college. Around 30 applied arts students of the institute took part in the contest. With a time limit of three hours, the participants, students from third year to fifth year, took up their brushes and colour palettes. Their objective — emphasising the importance of mothers breastfeeding their children.

The convener of the organisation, M.P. Jain, said the group was a strong believer in the 2012 slogan of Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India — Babies Need Mom-Made, Not Man-Made!

Fifth-year student Paras Nath Jee painted a cow feeding her calf and a woman using a feeding bottle for her child. Paras, who bagged the second prize, said: “Many women are unaware of the importance of breastfeeding. Powdered milk is harmful for the health of infants and mothers should realise this. I have also written a slogan on my poster to promote my point. Mother’s milk helps a child fight many diseases throughout his life.”

Fifth-year students Ranbir Kumar and Rakesh Kumar won the first and third prizes, respectively.

Shikha Kumari, a third-year student of applied arts, painted a child in the centre of a globe. She said: “Breastfeeding is important for both the mother and the child. It helps reduce the risk of breast cancer.” Fifth-year student Anupama and Shikha won the consolation prizes.

Fourth-year student Jyoti Kumari said: “My poster shows the mother holding her the child tight. When a mother breastfeeds her child, the emotional bonding between the child and the mother grows.”

Gita Jain, the chairperson of Adhar Mahila Vikas Swawalambi Sahkari Samiti, said: “It is the social responsibility of every family to explain how important breastfeeding is. By organising the competition at the College of Arts and Crafts, we have tried to make the young generation aware about breastfeeding. If these students are explained the importance of breastfeeding at their age, it will ensure their children are breastfed when they become parents.”

The organisation held different programmes through the World Breastfeeding Week (August 1-7) across the state capital.

“It is important that children are breastfed. If it is done within an hour of delivery, 10 lakh infants in the world, including 2.5 lakh in India, will not die. Breastfeeding helps reduce the risk of diarrhoea by 14 per cent,” Jain said.

College of Arts and Crafts principal Atul Aditya Pandey and applied arts faculty members Avinash Das and Shashi Ranjan were also present at the competition.