Thal plagued by hepatitis virus

Germ-infested water, lack of facilities and poverty among reasons of outbreak

NOORPUR THAL: Hepatitis C has become a silent epidemic in Tehsil Noorpur due to toxic and hazardous underground water and lack of health facilities.

A month ago, 2,100 people were tested at a hepatitis camp at Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, out of which 250 were diagnosed with the disease.

Reportedly, hundreds of people have been dying in the Tehsil every year due to Hepatitis C.

Villages of Noorpur Thal, Jharkal, Sidha, and Daduwali have population of thousands of people, and a large number of people affected by this dangerous disease, including children. Hundreds of people fall prey to the disease each year due to a lack of resources, poverty, and inadequate health care.

The 15-year-old water supply system in the Tehsil headquarters, which caters to a population of 32,000, serves only a few places. Its water has now become filthy and unusable due to sewerage; hence, 60% of the population has been forced to buy drinking water.

A filtration plant installed in the city has not been functional for one year, while another filtration plant has been hit by a rift between political parties-even before its launch.

Despite reports of prevalence of Hepatitis C disease in Noorpur Thal, no preventive measures have been taken by the previous or present government, which has spurred the disease to dangerous limits.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 21^st, 2020.