130 villages to draft health plans under Swasthya Swaraj campaign

Mysuru: Effective collaboration between govt departments and civil society organisations can significantly accelerate development and strengthen community-centred governance, said Basavaraju R Shrestha, executive director of Grassroots Research and Advocacy Movement (Graam), while inaugurating the Village Health Plan Abhiyan under the Swasthya Swaraj Project at the Mysuru Zilla Panchayat premises.

Addressing officials, health professionals and students, he said an innovative week-long campaign would be carried out across 130 villages in Hunsur taluk to prepare evidence-based village health plans (VHPs) through active community participation.

Speaking on the occasion, Nagaraju, district surveillance officer, stressed the importance of holistic and participatory health planning. He noted that such collaborative initiatives should be expanded and institutionalised across departments to strengthen community engagement and improve the comprehensive primary health care system.

As part of the campaign, VHPs will be prepared through a participatory process that includes transect walks, analysis of secondary data, separate focus group discussions with women and men, community consultations, validation meetings and the preparation of draft and final plans.

The campaign was flagged off by Bhimappa K Lali, deputy secretary (development), Mysuru zilla panchayat.