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Malaria deaths lead to protest
THE MALARIA deaths in villages in trans-Yamuna region led the residents to stage a massive demonstration outside the office of the chief medical officer here on Thursday.
THE MALARIA deaths in villages in trans-Yamuna region led the residents to stage a massive demonstration outside the office of the chief medical officer here on Thursday.
Over 400 residents, including women and children from 15 malaria-affected villages, gathered in front of the CMO office at around 1 pm and staged dharna for over four hours. The agitators under the banner of Sanchetna, raised slogans against the CMO and forced him to examine 50 malaria patients, who had also come along with the demonstrators.
Some women, who were angry with the continuous denial by the Health Department that deaths were due to malaria, showered expletives on the Health Department officers. They also threatened to ransack the CMO office. They refused to listen to the CMO's plea that measures, including fogging, were being taken in the malaria-affected villages.
Despite assurances by the CMO for taking action against staff of the Community Health Centre (CHC) and Primary Health Centres (PHCs), the residents refused to budge. They demanded removal the doctors posted at the Bara and Jasra PHCs. The residents also gheraoed the district malaria officer DN Shukla.
Sanchetna secretary Govind Saran said fogging should be conducted in all the malaria-prone villages in the trans-Yamuna region. The suspected malaria patients should be tested at the CMO office and provided proper treatment, he demanded. The malaria testing centre should open at the Jari and Bara primary health centres, he said. Sanchetna health supervisor Amar Bahadur said they would continue their dharna till the fogging started in all malaria-prone villages.
"The residents of as many as 15 affected villages, including Jari, Kanti, Baijala, Asarvai, Pipraon, Khadesar, Bara, Geenj, Attarsuiya, Gadiayan Kalan, Khurd, Lotadh, Bhiskuri, Machiyari Kalan, Bagulwa and Gohani will remain present at the CMO office till tomorrow," he claimed.
District malaria officer DN Shukla assured to open malaria testing centres at the Jari and Bara primary health centres. He also assured to remove staff from the PHCs, who had made allegedly done false reporting about the malaria deaths.
