Bhubaneswar: The state government will reach out to approximately 1.3 crore children across all 30 districts during the National Deworming Day campaign this year.

The plan is aimed at deworming children from 1 year to 18 years across the state involving four government departments. The National Deworming Day - April 4 - is one of the world's largest public health programmes to prevent children from intestinal parasitic worms that can lead to anaemia, malnutrition, impaired mental, physical and cognitive development and reduced school participation. It covers all children from 1 to 18 years of age across 36 states and Union Territories.

In Odisha, the state government has combined the National Deworming Day rounds with vitamin A supplementation for all children from 9 months to 5 years. This year's round is also combined with combating lymphatic filariasis in districts of high prevalence including Angul, Deogarh, Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, Jharsuguda and Nayagarh.

Director of state family welfare department Kamala Kanta Das said: "In six districts where there is a prevalence of lymphatic filariasis, we are combining the National Deworming Day round with mass drug administration campaign through door-to-door visits."

"This strategy will help us in not just improving nutrition of children by combating worm infestation transmitted through soil, but also elimination of lymphatic filariasis, infestation acquired during childhood but manifested in adults that can cause temporary or permanent disability," he said. The government has trained teachers and anganwadi centre workers and they will administer deworming drugs among kids at schools and anganwadi centres.

Children between one year and five years will be administered albendazole suspension at anganwadi centres and at the special Village Health Nutrition Day (VHND) camps.

Children between 6 years and 18 years will be administered albendazole tablet at government, government-aided and private schools by the school teachers.

Children between 6 years and 18 years who are out of school will be administered with albendazole tablet at anganwadi centres by anganwadi workers and malaria control programme volunteers. This year, door-to-door visits will be done in six districts where the campaign is linked with lymphatic filariasis.

During this programme, activities regarding sanitation and hygiene will also be taken up. Any child who is not dewormed on Wednesday due to sickness or absenteeism will be administered the tablet on April 11.