The Central government has decided to "rethink" the proposed ban on arecanut cultivation in Karnataka.
The move follows pressure from various quarters and the state government, said Gulam Nabi Azad, minister for health and family welfare.
Talking to reporters after reviewing the various schemes of the health and medical education departments, here today, he said the government has decided to put on hold the proposed arecanut ban.
A delegation led by chief minister Siddaramaiah had met Azad in Delhi a few days ago and urged him not to impose ban on arecanut.
Thousands of families in Malnad and Coastal districts of Karnataka depend on the arecanut crop for their livelihood.
On September 6, 2013, Amal Pusp, Director, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, wrote a letter to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), to examine the scientific evidences on the harmful effects of arecanut.
The move was aimed at initiating necessary action to classify the nut as an injurious substance and accordingly prohibit its use as ingredient in any food product, in conformity with the objectives of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.
Minister for Health and Family Welfare U T Khader and Minister of State for Medical Education Dr Sharan Prakash Patil reviewed the progress of various schemes with Azad.
National Urban Health Mission launch
Azad said the National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) would be launched in Bangalore in January 2014 to provide comprehensive primary health care to residents of all wards of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
The Centre is expected to provide Rs 150 crore under NUHM to set up comprehensive primary health centres, which are equivalent to the present primary health centres (PHCs), within the BBMP limits.
The comprehensive primary healthcentres would cater to all diseases of urban population, he said. The minister said there would be a doctor, a laboratory, pharmacist and a counselor for treating patients visiting these primary health centres at the ward level.
Presently, there are 92 PHCs in the city. Services at the comprehensive primary health centres would be made available to all free of charge. NUHM would be gradually extended to other city corporations of the state in the next one or two years, a Health Department official said.
Under the NUHM, there would be 30-bed to 100-bed hospitals in all 28 legislative assembly constituencies in the city and a major hospital (100 beds) in all eight zones. Now there are four major hospitals in four zones in the city.
Azad said, each primary care unit would cover a population of 40,000 to 50,000. The city's population as per the 2011 Census was 9.59 million. The city's population has grown 134 per cent during 1991-2011, making it one of the fastest-growing metropolitan cities in the world.
An advisory committee headed by the chief minister would manage the NUHM and a steering committee and a task force would be set up headed by principal secretary of the health department and Bangalore Mayor respectively.
