New Delhi, May 16 (IANS): Concerned over the increase in diabetes among children and adolescents, the union health ministry has initiated a school-based screening programme for diabetes on pilot basis in six districts in the country, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said Wednesday.

In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Azad said that several studies have contributed to overwhelming evidence that indicates the increase in diabetes among children and adolescents.

The health ministry has initiated a school-based screening programme for diabetes on pilot basis in six districts - Nainital (Uttarakhand), Theni (Tamil Nadu), Nellore (Andhra Pradesh), Dibrugarh (Assam), Bhilwara (Rajasthan) and Ratlam (Madhya Pradesh), he said.

"Funds to each district have been released for the purpose. The screening is primarily focused on school children of 1st to 10th standards in the age group of 5 to 15 years. The screening programme is in progress in the above cited six districts," he said.

Besides, the health ministry is running a School Health Programme (SHP) under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) specifically focused on school-going children and adolescents in the 6-18 years age group enrolled in government and government-aided schools.

With an estimated 50.8 million people, India has the world's largest diabetes population.