Bhubaneswar, Dec 2 (PTI) The Odisha government will soon launch a programme for immunisation of girls against cervical cancer, a minister said.

Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling said the proposed programme will focus on girls studying in schools and colleges to ward off the threat of the disease.

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The minister said the state government was working on a new scheme, combining the 'Ayushman Bharat' programme and 'Gopabandhu Jan Arogya Yojana', which would be rolled out in the next financial year.

The Ayushman Bharat scheme is a health insurance programme of the Centre while the main objective of the 'Gopabandhu Jan Arogya Yojana' is to provide free health services to the economically weaker citizens of the state.

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The proposed scheme would help the people get free treatment in 27,000 hospitals in the country, he said.

The minister was addressing the first National Conference on International Radiology organised here recently at the SUM Ultimate Medicare.

Besides, the state government would recruit 250 radiographers to be stationed in government hospitals across Odisha, he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)