The students and teachers in Ludhiana will check the blood pressure (BP) of the parents during the Parent Teacher Meeting (PTM) on October 17, as a part of ‘Hypertension Awareness Drive’ organised under the Mission Swasth Kavach. Mission Swasth Kavach is a public health initiative launched by Dayanand Medical College & Hospital (DMCH), Ludhiana. The letter issued by Deputy District Education Officer (secondary), Amandeep Singh, directed the students to check the BP of at least 100 visitors in each school, with the help of their teachers. According to the letter, the drive will be conducted on PTM day in middle, high and senior secondary schools across Ludhiana. The letter also stated that each person’s BP has to be checked thrice following the right method. This is to make people aware of the harmful effects of hypertension. The deputy DEO said the schoolchildren and teachers in the district had recently undergone the first aid training under ‘Mission Swasth Kavach’. “We have already provided schools with BP checking machines and they will be kept at schools henceforth for emergencies or any other medical need,” he said. Teachers were also told to keep record of people getting their BP checked and take photos of the drive as it might be used for inspection later.
