Family planning operations in Coimbatore recorded a decline in the last year with district slipping by two ranks in the State-wide list.
Sources in the Department of Family Welfare told The Hindu here on Saturday that Coimbatore district had come down to 9th rank in 2012-13 in the achievement of targets from the 7th rank in the previous financial year.
A plan of action has been formulated to combat this decline, which has been caused because of a combination of factors such as increased migration and lack of adequate awareness. The measures contemplated include training the Village Health Nurses and counselling pregnant women.
An information, education and communication (IEC) campaign in rural areas of the district has also been planned.
A major effort would also be made to tackle anaemia among women as iron deficiency has become a major reason that has prevented many women from taking family planning operations. The Sources said that special camps were also being planned in rural areas of the district during the current financial year.
Giving figures for the last two years, sources said that in 2012-13, the target was 14,500 for three procedures combined and achievement was 13,178.
In 2011-12, the target for vasectomy, tubectomy, and laparoscopy procedures combined was14,000 and the achievement was 13,914.
There has been a marked decline in the use of oral pills.
While the target for both the current and previous financial year has remained constant at 7,500, the achievement in 2012-13 was only 1,426.
This compared poorly with the figures for 2011-12, where the achievement was 4,360.
The use of contraceptive condoms has also declined, the sources said.
While the target for both the current and previous financial year was 11,000, the achievement declined to 6,035 this year compared to 9,033 in the last year, the sources added.
