Administrator
19 June 2025
Like in the past, this year again, the Jharkhand government is observing June 19 as World Sickle Cell Awareness Day.
On this occasion, Chief Minister Hemant Soren is drawing attention to a disease that affects thousands of children in India, especially Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal.
Even former Union Minister Arjun Munda’s two sons- Avinash and Abinav are prone to sickle cell anaemia. They often get their bouts of vomiting and suffer from chronic diarrhoea.
Aware of this dreaded disease, Sri Munda, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,had launched a drive against its prevalence, limited awareness and inadequate access to medical care.
As the problem continued, its impact posed serious challenges, particularly among tribals and marginalised communities.
In fact, Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a significant inherited blood disorder, particularly prevalent in tribal, marginalized, and underserved communities in India and other parts of the world.
A child can inherit Sickle Cell Disease if both parents carry the sickle cell trait. Children living with SCD often face debilitating pain, repeated hospitalisations, continued medication and blood transfusions from time to time.
Many are unable to attend school consistently or live active lives. Although SCD is manageable, it continues to cause avoidable illness and even death, especially in resource-constrained settings.
Recent advances in early diagnosis and genetic counselling offer new possibilities for reducing the burden of SCD, provided they are implemented with cultural sensitivity, care, and a people-first approach.
