In Jhalawar, men offered free LPG, phone for sterilisation

KOTA: Rural people cannot afford to pay for LPG connections, so the incentive will enable them to use gas in their houses for cooking

DR SAJID KHAN, chief medical and health officer, Jhalawar.

Men opting for sterilisation in Rajasthan’s Jhalawar district will get free cooking gas connection and mobile phones with free internet data for a year, officials said.

The health department of Jhalawar – the home district of chief minister Vasundhara Raje – has offered the incentive to maintain its top position in family planning in the state. The district remained on the top in 2016-17, recording 8795 sterilisation operations (270 male and 8525 female); the target was 8703.

The medical and health department in the state provides ₹2,000 as incentive to men opting for family planning operation (non-scalpel vasectomy) and ₹1,400 to women for tubectomy. But the Jhalawar health department has offered an additional incentive of ₹4,500 — free LPG connection with a filled cylinder and a burner set. “Along with the free LPG connection, the health department will provide a free Jio mobile phone (nonandroid) with yearlong free data and calling facility to men who will come forward for non-scalpel vasectomy,” said Dr Sajid Khan, chief medical and health officer, Jhalawar.

Men have been offered the incentive since they usually do not show interest in sterilisation. “Around 48 days are left for accomplishing the family planning target as the financial year 2017-18 will end in March, so the offer has been introduced to push male sterilisation in the district,” Khan said.

Jhalawar district has achieved 5640 sterilisation operations, around 60% of the given target -- 9400. “Since 10% of the target accounts for male sterilisation, 940 operations are to be done; but currently only 25 men have been sterilised,” Khan said, adding that 12 men have been given the incentive for non-scalpal vasectomy.

Asked about choosing free LPG connection as the incentive, Khan said, “Rural people usually cannot afford to pay for LPG connections, so the incentive will enable them to use gas in their houses for cooking; they will only have to refill their cylinders.” The decision to offer free LPG connection was taken last month at a meeting chaired by Jhalawar district collector Jitendra Kumar Soni.

Khan said, “Incentives of LPG and mobile data/calling are being provided from the cash award of Rs 15 lakh to the health department given by the state government last year on emerging first in sterilisation.”

An incentive scheme for women will be offered in March to push sterilisation figures. Last year, the health department gave 4G smartphones to men and sarees to women as incentives for sterilisation.