In February: Eight children fall prey to measles in Pishin

Anti-measles campaign is set to kick off in the first week of March.

QUETTA:

At least eight children lost their lives to a preventable disease, measles, in February alone in a remote district of Balochistan, raising the fatality count to 21 during the last 14 months.

Chairman Union Council Barshor Pishin district Abdul Wali Kakar confirmed the casualties. However, Director General Health Balochistan Farooq Azam said only six children had died in the beginning of February in Pishin district. “The affected area has been vaccinated after the outbreak of measles,” he told The Express Tribune.



While responding to a question as to why anti-measles campaign has not been launched in Balochistan like other provinces, the director general health said the chief minister has allocated the funds now. “The mass campaign would be launched at the beginning of March to vaccinate around three million children across Balochistan,” he said.

At least 21 children have so far died from measles during the year of 2014-15, he noted.

Abdul Wali Kakar said dozens of children were affected after the outbreak of measles. “There has been no anti-measles campaign for the last two years,” he said, adding “the negligence led to more deaths of innocent children.”

He said seven children had died in Union Council Khilji while one in Union Council Barshor of Pishin district. These two union councils are in remote areas of the province where healthcare facilities are hardly available to the local people, he added.

“There are several villages where children are still suffering from measles,” Abdul Wali said, adding, “vaccines are in short supply in many villages”.

More than 25 children have so far died after contracting the measles during the past 15 months. These fatalities were reported in northern areas, Nasirabad, Lesbela and other districts.

Sources claim that the deaths of children from measles are not being properly reported in the media because media persons are hardly accessible in remote areas while officials tend to cover up such reports.

Polio vaccinators go unpaid in Balochistan

Though the anti-polio vaccinators are risking their lives during the campaign in some parts of Quetta, they are hardly ever paid their wages on time. The vaccinators, for instance, were not paid for the latest four rounds of anti-polio campaigns in Quetta.

Each vaccinator is paid Rs600, a mere five dollars, per day during the anti-polio campaign.



The delay in releasing their wages – Rs350 from the health department and Rs250 from World Health Organisation (WHO), is adding to the woes of vaccinators who are already exposed to a very dangerous environment.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Additional Secretary Health Abdullah Khan said the money has been released by finance department of Balochistan. “The payment would be made soon,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 28^th, 2015.