Shravan Shruti program launched in Patna, New hope for deaf and mute children

Patna, Shravan Shruti is no longer just a scheme, it is a movement. It not only cured the ears of children, but also made them hear sounds that were never heard before. It has become a symbol of inclusive and sensitive health system.

Mangal Pandey, Minister of Health and Law Department of Bihar Government said this on Monday. He was speaking at the Shravan Shruti program in Gyan Bhawan. The minister inaugurated this program in all 23 blocks of the district in the presence of District Magistrate Dr. Tyagarajan SM.

State Health Committee Director Suharsh Bhagat and Additional Secretary Vaibhav Chaudhary also attended the program. The minister said that while being the District Magistrate of Gaya, Tyagarajan ji (now DM of Patna) started the Shravan Shruti program. It was appreciated globally. It was selected for the National Summit on Best Practices.

This scheme has now been implemented at the state level and it has been recommended to include it in the national policy. This scheme was for those children who could not hear from birth or in childhood. Many schemes of the government were added to it. This model can be adopted across the country.

Under this scheme, 4.25 lakh children were screened in 2,659 Anganwadi centers. Out of these, 1,739 children were tested for BER. 70 children were given cochlear implants. 1,769 children were given hearing aids. 1,839 children, who could not speak even a single word earlier, have now started speaking with the help of speech therapy.

The District Magistrate said that this scheme is being launched in Patna district today. After a meeting two months ago, this program was started as a pilot project in two blocks - Danapur and Phulwarisharif. This scheme will provide proper assistance to deaf and dumb children. He directed to increase awareness for screening of newborns.