Type I diabetic children and their parents have sought the Chief Minister’s intervention to ensure that the insulin currently available to them at the Mittayi clinics is replaced by the insulin that was provided earlier.
In its petition to the Chief Minister, the Type One Diabetes Foundation (Kerala) said insulin provided under the Kerala Mittayi Welfare Mission’s Mittayi scheme has been causing health problems in children, including diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), for the past one year.
The insulin, the foundation claimed, was not as effective as that provided earlier under Mittayi. The insulin provided earlier worked quickly, so students at school could take it and eat lunch after a short break. However, the insulin currently administered worked so slowly that lunch breaks ended without the children even getting to eat lunch. The foundation claimed the students had to miss classes or lunch.
The children had to receive more doses of the new insulin, but still their blood sugar levels did not come under control. When sugar levels rose, very young children could not control their bladders in the classroom. A blood test that measures average blood glucose levels over three months showed high levels in the children.
This was not the case with the administration of rapid-acting insulin, the foundation pointed out.
In the case of hospitalization, doctors recommended discontinuing the currently administered slow-acting insulin. However, for beneficiaries of Mittayi’s scheme, buying rapid-acting insulin from elsewhere was not affordable.
Hospitalizations also had an impact on children’s education, he said.
Although financial constraints reportedly forced the government to switch to slow-acting insulin, the situation has improved significantly in this area. However, children with type 1 diabetes continued to suffer as a result of the insulin currently provided.
The Mittayi scheme was a model for other states. The health of the children who were its beneficiaries must be protected, the foundation said, urging the chief minister to issue an order that could bring reliance to the children and their parents.
The foundation has also asked the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights to urge swift action.
Published – 07 March 2026 21:33 IST
