THATTA, April 3: The hilly terrain of Kohistan in Thatta district comprising union councils Jungshahi, Jhampir and part of union council Onger, having a population of more than a 100,000, has seen a rise in the number of tuberculosis patients since the last six months.

This correspondent has learnt through various sources including the Kohistan Rural Support Programme that 244 TB cases had been diagnozed in Novemeber and December last year in the union council Jhampir alone. Of these, at least 22 people had died in Thatta alone as they could not afford treatment.

Dur Mohammad Palari, the president, Kohistan Rural Support Programme, told this correspondent that only one Rural Health Centre at Jungshahi had meagre facilities for treating TB. A chest specialist, Dr Vasdev Lohana, at the centre could not help the patients as it was without any laboratory, X-ray machines and medicines.

Dr Abbas Gopang, general secretary of a local NGO, said that innumerable cases of TB had also been reported in other parts of Kohistan including Sari, Sarchat and Thana Bula Khan, and added that reports were frequently reaching of patients periodically succumbing to the disease.

People have urged the district health department as well as well-off citizens to help the people of Kohistan in getting rid of the increasing menace of TB.

US-LED FORCES CONDEMNED: In a meeting of village women, participated by Jatt, Zaur, Zangezo and Lund tribeswomen, the participants condemned American-led forces aggression on Iraq and called upon the tribesmen to help their Muslim brothers in whichever way they could.