Federal Health authorities told the National Assembly Standing Committee on Human Rights on Wednesday that Islamabad laboratories have so far tested 99 patients positive out of the total 613 suspected dengue patients. The committee, chaired by Member of National Assembly (MNA) Riaz Fatyana, met at the parliament house and was told that 613 suspected dengue patients reported to Islamabad hospitals this year and out of them, 609 patients were referred to the laboratories. “By September 19, a total of 99 patients have been tested positive for dengue virus,” the committee was told. The health authorities told the committee that this year one patient had expired due to the virus.
The committee asked the authorities concerned to take all necessary measures to check the spread of dengue virus in the country. The committee also sought a report on the preventive measures taken by the health authorities so far to this effect. The chairman directed health authorities to abolish discrimination due to fixation of age limit for the provision of free vaccines and medicines from the federal government to hepatitis patients in government hospitals.
MNA Farah Naz Ispahani asked the health authorites to launch awareness campaigns for the masses on Pakistan Television and Radio Pakistan. She was of the view that schools should be focus of such campaigns.
Fatyana and other members expressed concern over what they said were human rights violations in Karachi and Quetta. The committee was told that those killed in the Kharotabad incident were Tajik citizens with no criminal record. “They do not have any link with terrorism and were in Pakistan on regular passports,” the committee was further told.
Fatyana told the meeting that the committee had received a report by the Russian government through the foreign office which declared the deceased as innocent. Tajik authorities had also endorsed the report according to which the deceased were not linked to any proscribed organisation, he told the committee.
Ispahani expressed dissatisfaction over the preparations taken by Natural Disaster Management Authroity (NDMA) in the face of monsoon season. She said that UN and other departments had warned the NDMA and other disaster management organisations six months before the catastrophe, but they had failed to take precautionary measures. The committee summoned the Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO) head and Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO) authorities in the next meeting to respond to allegations regarding the violation of merit while recruitment in FESCO. The committee appreciated the judgment made in the Sialkot lynching case.
IIUI launches anti-dengue campaign: International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) on Wednesday launched a special dengue awareness and vaccination campaign.
Dr Asghar Ali Shah, consultant and a homoeopathic physician, who has invented a number of preventive vaccines to fight various diseases, delivered a brief lecture on dengue fever, its preventive measures and remedies.
Addressing the students and faculty members, Dr Asghar said dengue fever highly affected those who had low immunity system.
He said the virus was easily curable under special treatment measures. “There is no need to be afraid of it, but proper protective measures must be taken,” he said. On the occasion, free vaccine was administered to 700 people.
