Chief Minister directs steps cut down to IMR, MMR

Hyderabad, May 26: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy directed the officials to take steps in a focussed manner to reduce the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and Maternity Mortality Rate (MMR) in the State.The Chief Minister said the IMR and MMR, which is comparatively high in the State, has to be brought down and all steps towards this taken immediately, a release from Chief Minister's Office said here.Mr Reddy said steps like motivating institutional delivery and providing nutritional food to pregnant woman should be taken up on a mission mode throughout the State and in a fast expanding progressive State like Andhra Pradesh, "there is no reason why we cannot cut down the IMR and MMR drastically." The Chief Minister held a detailed review of the Women, Child Welfare and Disabled Welfare Departments, functioning of the Juvenile Welfare and Women Cooperative Finance Corporation and AP Foods with the head of the departments and said that large scale Skill Development and Job Training programmes should be taken up with the Women Coop Corporation as the nodal agency.The Chief Minister said huge funds could be leveraged from the Centre as the Finance Commission is very much focussed on Skill Development and job training to various sections of the people
=====================================================