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ISLAMABAD, June 3: Health Minister Muhammad Nasir Khan on Friday told the Senate that a Rs3 billion national programme for safe drinking water would be launched soon. The minister was responding to a point of order of Senator Nisar A Memon here on Friday.
Memon in his point of order urged the government to take immediate steps for the provision of clean drinking water to the people in the country.
He maintained that in the absence of proper clean drinking water facility, the people were prone to a number of water-borne diseases.
He urged the ministry of food agriculture and livestock (Minfal), Ministry of Environment, Water and Power and Health to work together for a comprehensive programme for the provision of safe and clean drinking water to the people.
He added that the amount of Rs3 billion on this programme would be enhanced gradually.
In reply to another point of order raised by Senator Allama Abbas Kamali regarding the treatment to the blast victims of Bari Imam, the minister said he had personally visited the injured at Pims and Polyclinic in Islamabad and on his directive best possible treatment and medicines were being provided to the injured.
“Some of them were in serious condition but due to proper treatment have recovered”, he remarked.
FREE HEPATITIS: The health minister said the government was providing free Hepatitis B vaccine to all provinces for children under one year of age as part of Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) support.
In reply to a question in the Senate, the minister said under the recently developed national strategy for the prevention and control of Hepatitis, there is a proposal to vaccinate adults belonging to high risk groups free of cost all over the country. Nasir Khan said there were 1.5 million TB patients registered under DOTS in the country.
These included 810,000 in the Punjab, 337,500 in Sindh, 195,000 in NWFP, 75,000 in Balochistan, 36,000 in AJK, 36,000 in Fata and 10,500 in Northern Areas.
The minister said some Rs112.6 million had been provided to the provinces in the shape of vehicles, laboratories, supplies, chemicals and establishment of reference laboratories for the eradication of TB in the country.—APP
