KHARAR, AUG 19: Punjab Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Inderjeet Singh Zira said that the Punjab government has chalked out a comprehensive plan to check the spread of infectious diseases in the state and set up special medical check posts at all the major railway stations in the state to examine the incoming migratory labourers.Zira was addressing a health education camp organized by the District Health Department in collaboration with the Gharuan Gram Panchayat at the primary health centre of Gharuan village, near here, on Tuesday.He said a majority of migratory labourers lived in slum areas in their native states where they contracted diseases like leprosy, malaria, tuberculosis, AIDS and water-borne diseases which spread as labuorers move from one state to another.Zira further said that the state government had also made a plan to ensure adequate health care to residents of slum areas in the state. Under this plan, a teams of doctors would visit the slum areas to educate the inhabitants about health care and conduct a regular medical check-up.He urged social organisations to extend support to the Health Department for this purpose. The minister disclosed that the state government would upgrade 10 primary health centres to community health centres in the state during the current year. Sixty new ambulances would also be provided to various health centres.Zira said the state government would spend a sum of Rs 421.88 crore for the uplift of health services in the state under the five-year plan. Rs 44 crore has been spent during the last year while a sum of Rs 126 crore would be spend during the current year for this purpose.The minister added that the medicines worth Rs 12.5 crore had been supplied to various health centres in the state during this year. A sum of Rs 15 crore would be spend for this purpose during the next year.
