The Punjab government is importing fresh medicine for anti-mosquito spray, which is expected to reach Pakistan by Monday while Chief Minister Punjab has formed a high level investigation committee headed by Additional Inspector General of Police for conducting inquiry into the complaint of adulteration in anti-mosquito medicines that will also fix the responsibility.
Official sources told Business Recorder that the provincial government has taken serious notice of public complaints about adulteration in anti-mosquito spray and has adopted necessary safeguards to stop it. According to them, the provincial government has asked the authorities concerned to follow WHO standards for eliminating dengue virus.
Experts believe that continuous anti-mosquito spray enhances the resistance power of mosquitoes; hence, other scientific methods need to be adopted for its elimination. "People need to keep their environment neat and clean so that breeding of dengue could be controlled," they said.
According to the latest report, over 2,500 dengue fever patients were reported so far during the current year, out of which, about 2,410 patients have recovered. At present, around 100 patients are under treatment in various hospitals and free of cost treatment facilities are being provided to them. According to the report, 27 dengue fever patients are under treatment in Mayo Hospital, six in Services Hospital, three in Lahore General Hospital, one each in Jinnah Hospital, Kot Khawaja Saeed Hospital, District Headquarter Hospital Vehari, Farooq Hospital Lahore and Sheikh Zayed Hospital Rahim Yar Khan, 18 in Sheikh Zayed Hospital Lahore, seven in Doctors Hospital, three each in National Hospital Lahore and Allied Hospital Faisalabad and two in Holy Family Hospital Rawalpindi, two patients in DHQ Hospital Faisalabad and four in Ghurki Trust Hospital Lahore. Furthermore dengue virus has been tested positive in 112 patients in Shaukat Khanum Laboratory, 33 in Chughtai Lab, 74 in Institute of Public Health Bacteriology Lab and 17 patients by EDO Health Rawalpindi.
Moreover, one-day orientation workshop for newly appointed Deputy District Officers (Health) in 10 towns of Lahore was held at Directorate General Health Punjab on Saturday. These officers have been posted on the direction of the Chief Minister Punjab for the control of dengue fever and effective monitoring and supervision of anti-mosquito spray and other activities at town level. The DDO (H) were sensitised about the preventive measures, symptoms, diagnose, treatment and case management of dengue cases. They were also apprised of the administrative and managerial matters for effective monitoring of polio campaign.
Director General Health Dr Muhammad Aslam Chaudhry, Director Health EPI Dr Arshad Iqbal Dar and Director Health CDC Dr Mubashar Malik addressed the training workshop. Further, Chairman Town Emergency Response Committee Mian Marghoob Ahmad MNA has directed Samanabad Town administration to utilise all its resources for insuring spray in all residential and commercial areas of the town for the eradication of dengue and protection of people of the area from it.
He said that no leniency would be shown to the officers and officials showing negligence in the performance of duty regarding elimination of dengue virus and strict action would be taken against them. The committee members also visited Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Wapda Hospital and Sir Ganga Ram Hospital. During his visit to Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Mian Marghoob Ahmad directed the hospital administration to keep the outdoor of the hospital open for 16 hours instead of four hours so that dengue virus patients should not face any difficulty in case of any emergency. The hospital administration assured all out co-operation to members national and provincial assembly and informed that two more wards as well as staff will be increased for the dengue patients.