Port Blair, Aug 3: The World Breast Feeding Week 2016 celebration at A&N Islands commenced with inauguration of weeklong programme by the Department of Paediatrics, Andaman & Nicobar islands Institute of Medical Sciences (ANIIMS) at GB Pant Hospital, Auditorium. Banners were put all over the hospital to make the public aware of the importance of Breast Feeding and to spread the message that exclusive breast feeding for 6 months will save our children from various diseases. The function started with all the faculty and students of ANIIMS in attendance including 02 foreign students from the UK, Leeds Medical School, who participated whole-heartedly by displaying 02 posters depicting the importance of Breast feeding.
In his keynote address, Maj. Gen. (Dr) R P Choubey, VSM (Retd.), Director, ANIIMS said that breast feeding is a natural phenomenon, which was practised intensively in the past but lost its sheen in the recent years, necessitating measures to put it back on track, for which celebrations of this kind are essential.
His talk was followed by that of Dr. T .L. Ratnakumari, Professor of Paediatrics, ANIIMS on the Overview of breast feeding practices elaborating all the valuable goodness of breast milk emphasizing that no excuse should lessen the importance of exclusive breast feeding for 6 months.
Another talk elaborating this year’s theme was delivered by Dr. B. Karthik Kumar, Senior Resident, Paediatrics. He clearly spelt out how practicing breast feeding can effectively help to reduce the wasteful spending on infant milk substitutes and how it impacts the economy of the nation, so much so that breast feeding is the key to attain the sustainable development goals, which is envisaged to be attained by 2030. Dr. Ashok Dhete, Associate Professor, Paediatrics, ANIIMS proposed the vote thanks.
