A two-year World Bank aided pilot project in two districts of Tamil Nadu, aimed at preventing cardiovascular diseases, has found that people in rural areas,especially those aged above 30 years, are becoming more prone to hypertension, resulting in heart ailments.

The project is being implemented in Sivaganga and Virudhunagar districts by the state health department through Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and government hospitals.

It envisages making recommendations on the curative and preventive aspects, a senior health department official said.

In the initial stage, clinics in PHCs and government hospitals have been established to reduce risk and also create awareness about hypertension among people in rural areas, who used to simply ignore it. "Awareness about hypertension will be created among schoolchildren, in work places and at the community level, the official said.