The newly built ‘Ma Vatsalya’ Mothers Milk Bank, equipped with state-of-the-art facilities for newborns, was inaugurated at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital by Health Minister Rushikesh Patel on Thursday.Speaking on the occasion, Patel underscored that milk banks play a vital role in reducing infant mortality. “Mother’s milk is the best food for newborns. It provides essential nutrients, antibodies, and protective properties. But, in some situations, when the mother does not have enough milk, or if the baby is suffering from a serious illness, or is premature and has critical conditions, it becomes extremely necessary to provide mother’s milk to these children. Keeping such situations in mind and to reduce infant mortality, ‘Maa Vatsalya’ Mother’s Milk Bank has been set up at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital,” Patel said. This bank aims to reduce infant mortality by providing mother’s milk to newborns in critical conditions. (Source: Express Photo)Currently, milk banks are functional in Surat, Vadodara, Valsad, and Gandhinagar. Patel noted that an additional three milk banks at the civil hospitals in Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, and Rajkot have also been granted approval.The milk bank functions through a cloud-based registration system, with beneficiaries having unique IDs. This bank, with a consultation centre, has eight modern milk expression stations for mothers, where the collected milk is made safe with an automatic pasteurizer.The minister thanked the US-based alumni association of BJ Medical College, Pandya Family Foundation, and Dr Gaurang, a student of the 1974 batch of the medical college who donated $80,000 for the milk bank.The milk bank is equipped with two vertical and one horizontal deep freezer for milk storage, with a total storage capacity of 45 litres. It has a 24×7 team of 10 staff nurses, 1 lab technician, and 2 pediatricians to conduct bacteriological testing for the purity of the milk.Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:ahmedabad