Shortage of anti-rabies vaccines

Letter November 25, 2018
Pakistan is rapidly running short of the Anti-Rabies Vaccine due to tensions between the two South Asian nations

KARACHI: Lately there is an increase in cases of dog-bite in Karachi. Around 100 cases of dog-bite are reported daily and around 20,000 a year. This has created panic among the common people.

Dog saliva usually contains rabies which can cause death if not treated. The vaccine for dog-bite is usually imported from India. Pakistan is rapidly running short of the Anti-Rabies Vaccine due to tensions between the two South Asian nations as one of the Indian leading biotech firms has reduced its production saying that they couldn’t meet the demand of their own country and so they are unable to export the vaccine to Pakistan. The Indian government is denying visas to Pakistani importers to deal with other vaccine manufacturers. Pakistan now has to look for other options to deal with this problem.

The government and the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation should do the needful at the earliest possible.

Ammar Quaid Johar

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25th, 2018.

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