MITHI: Health Minister Jam Mehtab Dahar currently visiting Tharparkar told a press conference at the DC office in Mithi town on Thursday that the provincial government was not in a position to ensure availability of proper health facilities in each and every village of the district but was focusing on controlling deaths of ailing mothers and their babies.

He noted that newborns and other children under the age of five were dying in Tharparkar due to various reasons including a lack of proper healthcare facilities.

“We are working on a one-point-agenda, i.e. to ensure maximum possible healthcare facilities for expectant mothers to avoid premature births,” he said referring to a large number of deaths of newborns in the district being reported by the media.

Mr Dahar said although availability of all healthcare facilities in every village was not possible, the government was making sure that proper medical treatment at major hospitals and dispensaries was made available to expectant mothers so that neonatal mortalities could be avoided. In most newborn death cases, the issue appeared to be premature births, he observed, adding that malnutrition and other issues relating to food and water shortage could be a contributing factor.

He urged the media to highlight genuine problems in a positive manner instead of creating a hype.

In reply to a question regarding a drought-like situation in parts of Thar, the minister said that the entire region had been facing the chronic issue of drought. However, he added, the provincial government had taken appropriate and effective measures over the years to mitigate Thar people’s sufferings. Regular food supplies, maximum possible healthcare facilities and installation of RO plants had helped contain the situation to a great extent, he said.

Published in Dawn, February 12th, 2016