PGI organises family planning event to mark World Population Day

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 11

The Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, organised a group discussion amongst both sex groups of society at Indira Colony on World Population Day.

The event was organised under the guidance of Dr JS Thakur, Prof, Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, in continuation with World Population Fortnight being observed in Chandigarh. Women Multipurpose Worker Meena prepared a list of couples, who got married recently, and those, who had at least two children irrespective of sex.

A group of 50 persons turned up for discussion. Some reasons for not adopting family planning methods came out to be “want bigger families means more hands to earn, more boys/males in the family, which again means more earning hand”. Other being not aware of all family planning methods, especiallymale members of society, reluctance by each sex to use any method of contraception, fear of side-effects and belief that child bearing will stop naturally. Amongst permanent methods, vasectomy is still believed to be causing weakness among male members of society.

Dr Ekta Dogra, Senior Resident, Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, addressed the concerns of the group over various family planning methods. She discussed various methods available under National Family Planning programme. She apprised the gathering about how these methods were easily available with ANMs, which could be availed by just visiting them.

Dr Jenefa Persis, Junior Resident, Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, said, “Women have right to make their own decision about whether, when and how to become pregnant. Non-discrimination policy is followed by family planning services. Each individual is empowered to make his/her reproductive choice with full autonomy, without coercion and pressure under complete privacy and confidentiality.”