The Health department is joining hands with the Education department to launch a comprehensive school health programme “Aksharam Arogyam” in order to ensure the holistic health and well being of the State’s younger generation.
This initiative will cover all students from Classes I to XII in all government and aided schools across the State. The Health department believes that if children are given proper awareness on various aspects of health and if they can be encouraged to develop healthy habits, they will become the ambassadors of good health, carrying the message home to their families.
Under the Aksharam Arogyam programme, children will be screened for various health parameters and issued health cards, documenting their medical details. These cards can be converted to electronic health records later and securely stored at the State Data Centre with full privacy and data protection measures. The electronic health records will be helpful in emergency situations.
All schools that join this initiative will conduct ‘health assemblies’ and ‘health corners’ to encourage healthy lifestyles and discourage unhealthy habits.
In each school, a designated teacher will act as the health mentor. These teachers will undergo training based on modules jointly prepared by the Health and Education departments. They will provide structured health education to students at regular intervals, covering 11 themes across four key domains. School authorities will have to allocate specific time slots and facilities to teachers to impart health education.
Health education will be delivered in an age-appropriate manner. The programme is designed in such a manner that it evokes curiosity in children, generates scientific understanding, and leads to their active participation in all health-related activities and initiatives. The programme is so designed that the information and awareness that the students gather will trickle down to their families, gain acceptance in families, before it is widely accepted by the community as a whole.
To ensure active student involvement, one or two students from each class will be selected as health ambassadors, who will disseminate the messages and health information that teachers pass on to them among their peers in a more engaging manner.
The Health department reckons that this initiative will further strengthen the ongoing school health initiatives such as iron and folic acid supplementation, adolescent health programmes, immunisation drives, and menstrual hygiene initiatives.
Through Aksharam Arogyam, students and teachers will also be trained in rendering basic first aid, which will enable them to be of assistance during health emergencies at school or enabling them to offer immediate assistance in emergencies occurring at school or at home.
This programme will also help in the early identification of any health issue in children and its timely resolution. It is expected to contribute directly to the mental and physical well being of children and promote academic excellence.
Health Minister Veena George will inaugurate Aksharam Arogyam on Friday at Cotton Hill Government Higher Secondary School. Education Minister V. Sivankutty will preside over the function.
EOM
Published – February 04, 2026 08:52 pm IST
