Tuberculosis spreads when an infected person coughs or sneezes or transmits respiratory fluids into the air. This was the theme of a majority of drawings and paintings that were on display at the World TB Day Drawing Competitions conducted by the Revised National TB Control Programme, National Rural Health Mission and the Pondicherry State Artists’ Society here on Sunday.
The program was aimed to raise awareness amongst children about tuberculosis. The theme was Reach the three million, find, treat, and cure TB. The children were all given a Styrofoam plate with paper on the inside and a two hour time limit to paint what they thought was important when the word TB came to their mind.
“Since yesterday, I was looking up the Internet to find something appropriate for the theme. That was when I realised that most of the time TB is transmitted by coughing, so I took a picture that I used for the competition and won a prize,” Kaviya, one of the participants said.
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According to Abarna, another participant, she decided not to research on the internet and instead come up with an idea on her own. Her idea was that as a person smokes a cigarette, the cigarette is reduced to ash, but what people do not realise is that along with the cigarette, just like the cigarette the person’s life also reduces to ashes. Stopping Quitting smoking is a way to reduce the TB risk.
There were 25 children who won prizes on that day and Director of Health and Family Welfare K.V. Raman was the guest of honour. Over 250 students from schools across the town took part.