News Article
From Times of India - Original
HEADLINE:
Lack of Control Scheme Caused
Sudden Outbreak of Malaria
DATELINE:
27 December 1999
By Sachchidanand Jha
PATNA: The failure of the state government to sanction
any malaria control scheme during 1997-99 proved to be a
major cause for the sudden outbreak of the disease in 18
southern and central districts of the state.
This was revealed at a high-level review meeting Governor
Vinod Chandra Pandey held recently with the state
government officials including the chief secretary, the health
commissioner and the acting director-in-chief of the state
health services. Pandey strongly disapproved of the way the
government tackled the malaria menace, particularly its
surveillance aspect. He expressed his concern over the high
casualty rate in Godda and Hazaribagh districts of south
Bihar, according to highly placed sources in the state health
department.
Initially, the authorities concerned with the malaria control
programme had floated a theory that the disease had
broken out due to prolonged rainy season. But this theory
had no takers even among the top health department
officials who felt that had this been the reason for its
outbreak, then north Bihar districts like Darbhanga,
Madhubani, Samastipur, Vaishali, Sitamarhi and Saharsa
would have been devastated by the disease. These districts
are faced with the perennial problem of waterlogging in the
absence of flood control measures.
Following directives from the governor, the health
department has sent Chief Malaria Officer D P Mandal to
the malaria-affected districts to take stock of the situation
and suggest measures to control the disease.
Intensive spraying of DDT could not be undertaken in these
districts as well as those affected by kala-azar due to the
state government's failure to sanction any malaria control
scheme. Although DDT and medicine for treatment of both
malaria and kala-azar are supplied by the Centre, the state
health department did not place any order for supply of
DDT during 1997-99 as it did not have the funds to pay for
the freight charge and the labour cost it would have had to
incur on its spraying, according to a senior health
department official.
While the leader of the opposition in the state Assembly,
Sushil Kumar Modi, informed Prime Minister Vajpayee at
the BJP's `Nav Nirman' rally on Friday that 5,000 people
had died of malaria in the state, state health commissioner D
P Maheshwari put the death figure at 145 only on Saturday.
According to Maheshwari, the state government sanctioned
such malaria control schemes this year as focal spraying of
DDT in the affected districts. He, however, admitted that
the focal spraying had been undertaken only after the
outbreak of the disease. He claimed that the government
had supplied DDT and medicine to all the affected districts
but added that the spraying work should have been
completed latest by May-June.
The director-in-chief of the state health services, V S Singh,
said inadequate and erratic spraying of DDT during the last
few years had led to the outbreak of malaria. "Malaria is
likely to subside after December. After completion of focal
spraying in the malaria-affected districts, the government
would turn its attention to the kala-azar-affected districts.
The government would demand more DDT from the Centre
for this purpose," Singh informed. He, however, added that
the Centre had rejected the demand for supply of
malathion.
Meanwhile, the state government told the Union health
ministry that the last batch of SAG, the first-line drug for
treatment of kala-azar, supplied to Bihar had been found to
be substandard following tests carried out at a top
laboratory.
Singh claimed that at least 12 kala-azar patients had died
following administration of the substandard SAG. "The state
government sent the drug for test following reports of death
due to consumption of the said batch of SAG by the
patients. The Centre has been informed about the finding of
the chemical test of the drug. The state government has
demanded supply of SAG of standard quality," he added.
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