Awareness, increased allowance for vasectomy reduce family planning burden on women in Coimbatore

Following increased awareness and a hike in the family planning allowance, the number of men choosing family planning procedure vasectomy has seen an increase in Coimbatore district.

Men who undergo the minimally invasive procedure, namely no-scalpel vasectomy (NSV), get an allowance of ₹3,100 when it is done in a government hospital. While ₹2,100 is given after the procedure, the remaining ₹1,100 will be credited to the bank account of the person.

As per the data shared by the Family Welfare Department, the number of men who underwent the sterilisation procedure was 10 in the 2021 - 2022 financial year. The number increased to 22 in the next fiscal and takers for the procedure rose to 34 in 2023 – 2024. A total of about 15 men underwent vasectomy in the district in the current financial year, from April.

“The government allowance for vasectomy is ₹1,100 and an additional sum of ₹1,000 is provided by the Coimbatore district Collector. Another ₹1,000 is sponsored by Shree Devi Textiles. Until 2022 – 2023, the allowance was ₹2,100. Rotary Royals is the private sponsor in Pollachi,” said M. Gowri, Deputy Director of Family Welfare Department for Coimbatore and Tiruppur districts.

In Tiruppur, Anitha Texcot Pvt Ltd is sponsoring ₹1,000 besides the government allowance and additional allowance of ₹1,000 from the district Collector.

The number of women who undergo the family planning procedure, namely tubectomy, ranges from 900 to 1,000 in Coimbatore district per month in both private and government hospitals. When done in a government hospital, women get an allowance of ₹600.

“Unlike tubectomy, which requires prior admission, NSV is a daycare procedure. The time taken for the minimally invasive procedure is around 15 minutes, which requires very few basic tests, including blood tests. If a man comes for the procedure after having his breakfast, he can reach home before lunch. Routine activities can be resumed after two days. A semen analysis test will be done after three months,” said Dr. Gowri.

In order to create awareness among men on the procedure, the Family Planning Department organised a rally on November 21, in view of the ‘NSV fortnight’ special camp that is presently underway in government hospitals. Coimbatore District Collector Kranthi Kumar Pati also released awareness posters and flagged off an awareness vehicle, which will be taken to public places, villages, etc.

To know more about family planning procedures, contact District Extension Educator T. Rani 80728-65541 (Coimbatore and Tiruppur), counsellors Ramya 97897-80933 (Coimbatore) and Vidya 99422-59775 (Tiruppur).

Published - November 24, 2024 09:17 pm IST