23:11
Unknown
Rawalpindi
The children living in Media Town have never been administered vaccine during anti-polio drives because it does not fall in the jurisdiction of any health department of Pakistan as both federal and the provincial health departments declined to own the area.
Media Town, a developing housing society along PWD Road, comprises nearly 50 houses with residents while almost the same number of under-construction houses are being used by families of labourers for residence. However, none of the health authorities has ever visited the town for administering anti-polio vaccine to children staying there.
“I have been living in Media Town for over two years yet never witnessed any team from the health department to administer anti-polio drops to children below five years of age in the town,” said Farooq Alam who has two children below five years of age.
He added that a number of families of labourers have settled themselves in Media Town since the start of construction work here. “There are a number of children below five years of age in the town who have never been administered anti-polio vaccine,” said Farooq.
It is important that missing of a single child under immunisation drives for months amounts to give room to spread of polio in the region. In case of Media Town, the more alarming fact is that the area houses a number of children having origin in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and on the basis of it, the area should be declared high-risk area.
Director Health Services at CDA Dr. Hassan Arooj, when contacted by ‘The News’ the other day, said that the teams of federal health department should have been visiting the area if it falls in the jurisdiction of federal administration. He, however, added that he would check why the area has been missed.
Later, when contacted by ‘The News’ on Friday, he said that the area does not fall in the jurisdiction of his department instead the district health department Islamabad Capital Territory or District Health Department Rawalpindi is responsible for administering anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town.
“We are supposed to cover population in sectors acquired by the CDA though we administer anti-polio vaccine to children in a number of non-acquired sectors in North West of the capital including areas in Tarnol, Golra and Sangjani on humanitarian ground,” said Dr. Hassan.
He added that District Health Department ICT is covering population residing at DHA Phase 1 and 2 along with other neighbouring localities of Media Town. “Administering anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town is responsibility of District Health Department ICT or Rawalpindi health department,” he said.
District Health Officer ICT Dr. Muhammad Azhar Khan, when contacted by ‘The News’, said that Media Town does not fall in the jurisdiction of his office as plots there have been given to the journalists by the Punjab government. “We do not administer anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town because we do not want to interfere in the areas falling in the jurisdiction of the Punjab government,” he said.
District Health Officer, Rawalpindi, Dr. Khalid Randhawa, when contacted, said that Media Town falls in the jurisdiction of federal administration and an obvious marker of it is that the area falls in the jurisdiction of a police station serving under federal government. “Punjab police does not operate in Media Town,” he said.
He added that on humanitarian ground, he may make special arrangements to administer anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town but it is not a permanent solution to the problem. “I am clear that the area falls in the jurisdiction of federal health department and the officials there should take responsibility of missing children for years,” said Dr. Randhawa.
The children living in Media Town have never been administered vaccine during anti-polio drives because it does not fall in the jurisdiction of any health department of Pakistan as both federal and the provincial health departments declined to own the area.
Media Town, a developing housing society along PWD Road, comprises nearly 50 houses with residents while almost the same number of under-construction houses are being used by families of labourers for residence. However, none of the health authorities has ever visited the town for administering anti-polio vaccine to children staying there.
“I have been living in Media Town for over two years yet never witnessed any team from the health department to administer anti-polio drops to children below five years of age in the town,” said Farooq Alam who has two children below five years of age.
He added that a number of families of labourers have settled themselves in Media Town since the start of construction work here. “There are a number of children below five years of age in the town who have never been administered anti-polio vaccine,” said Farooq.
It is important that missing of a single child under immunisation drives for months amounts to give room to spread of polio in the region. In case of Media Town, the more alarming fact is that the area houses a number of children having origin in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and on the basis of it, the area should be declared high-risk area.
Director Health Services at CDA Dr. Hassan Arooj, when contacted by ‘The News’ the other day, said that the teams of federal health department should have been visiting the area if it falls in the jurisdiction of federal administration. He, however, added that he would check why the area has been missed.
Later, when contacted by ‘The News’ on Friday, he said that the area does not fall in the jurisdiction of his department instead the district health department Islamabad Capital Territory or District Health Department Rawalpindi is responsible for administering anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town.
“We are supposed to cover population in sectors acquired by the CDA though we administer anti-polio vaccine to children in a number of non-acquired sectors in North West of the capital including areas in Tarnol, Golra and Sangjani on humanitarian ground,” said Dr. Hassan.
He added that District Health Department ICT is covering population residing at DHA Phase 1 and 2 along with other neighbouring localities of Media Town. “Administering anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town is responsibility of District Health Department ICT or Rawalpindi health department,” he said.
District Health Officer ICT Dr. Muhammad Azhar Khan, when contacted by ‘The News’, said that Media Town does not fall in the jurisdiction of his office as plots there have been given to the journalists by the Punjab government. “We do not administer anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town because we do not want to interfere in the areas falling in the jurisdiction of the Punjab government,” he said.
District Health Officer, Rawalpindi, Dr. Khalid Randhawa, when contacted, said that Media Town falls in the jurisdiction of federal administration and an obvious marker of it is that the area falls in the jurisdiction of a police station serving under federal government. “Punjab police does not operate in Media Town,” he said.
He added that on humanitarian ground, he may make special arrangements to administer anti-polio vaccine to children in Media Town but it is not a permanent solution to the problem. “I am clear that the area falls in the jurisdiction of federal health department and the officials there should take responsibility of missing children for years,” said Dr. Randhawa.
Posted in: Islamabad
0 comments:
Post a Comment