Dengue takes its toll — still

Though dengue first became a threat to public health in 2006, each passing year sees an increase in the number of patients and the death toll it leaves in its wake. This year, Punjab is arguably the worst affected province, with over 14,760 cases and 186 people dead because of the disease. In Lahore, where 168 people have died so far, there are only three functional platelet separators, which is inadequate for the number of patients the province is facing. This year, as usual, saw the Punjab health department scrambling to its feet long after the time for preventive measures had passed. In the vacuum created by the government’s lack of action, charlatans are flourishing, since they at least offer people a hope of cure. The provincial health department has indicated that the epidemic is under control, but this does not mean success of the government because cooler weathers generally reduce the diseases’s incidence. In the same vein, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s statement that a plan to counter dengue in the winter has been created must be taken with a pinch of salt. Dengue is a disease which strikes mostly between June and November, with cooler temperatures causing the strain to become dormant.

The chief minister is now addressing dengue seminars and inaugurating Facebook pages and hotlines for the disease — all very well, but not a substitute for basic administrative competence. The sincerity of the government’s efforts to fight against dengue is also suspect, with reports of fake dengue fumigations surfacing. Meanwhile, the PPP has taken the opportunity to malign the incompetent governance of the PML-N in Punjab, but instead of political bickering, both the federal and provincial governments should be working to bring the epidemic under control. In the absence of a clearly chalked-out plan, the best citizens can do is protect themselves by wearing long, loose clothing, making sure there aren’t any standing pools of water around their houses and workplaces and using mosquito repellants.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 10^th, 2011.