The program involves the use of Muslim holy texts and clerics in an awareness campaign and the distribution of contraceptives at mosques, the Indo-Asian News Service reported Thursday.

"What comes in the way of family planning is ignorance and not religion. The community should come out of darkness. The state government would follow the example of Pakistan, which has reportedly decided to distribute contraceptives at mosques and involve clerics in spreading family planning awareness", state Health Minister Ajay Vishnoi said.

Vishnoi said the program was inspired in part by a book by Muzaffar Hussain, called "Census Islam and Family Planning," which argues that family planning is compatible with Muslim values.

Some 10,000 copies of the book will be distributed by the government free of charge so that "the message of family planning reaches the people," Vishnoi said.