New Delhi, Apr 13 (PTI): The principal of Delhi University's Laxmibai College has been caught on video coating the walls of a classroom with cow dung.

The Principal Pratyush Vatsala told PTI that the act was part of an ongoing research, being undertaken by a faculty member.

She said the project is named Study of Heat stress Control by Using Traditional Indian Knowledge.

"It is under process. I will be able to share details of the full research after a week. The research is being carried out in porta cabins. I coated one of them myself because there's no harm in touching natural mud. Some people are spreading misinformation without knowing the full details," she said.

In the video, Vatsala is seen applying cow dung on the walls with the help of her staff.

She reportedly shared the video herself in the college's teachers' group, noting that indigenous methods are being adopted to cool classrooms in C Block.

"Those who have classes here will soon get these rooms in a new look. Efforts are being made to make your teaching experience pleasant," she wrote in the message.

Established in 1965, and named after Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi, the college is located in Ashok Vihar and operates under the Delhi government.

The college comprises five blocks, with the recent initiative focused on one of them.

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Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.

The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.

The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.

Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.

The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.

"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.

To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.

"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.

The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.

The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.

It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.