RAHIM YAR KHAN: Three children were injured on Thursday in an attack by a pack of street dogs in Basti Ahmed Baksh Jhulan in Khanpur, 48 kilometres from here.

The injured children –Waqar (11), Fayyaz (10) and Sarfraz (nine) – are being treated at the Shaikh Zayed Medical College Hospital (SZMCH).

Hospital focal person Dr Rana Ilyas told Dawn the children came under attack of the dogs when they were going to fields. Some passersby rescued them and shifted them first to the Khanpur Tehsil Headquarters Hospital to be referred to the SZMCH because of the unavailability of rabbies vaccine there.

The condition of the children is stated to be stable. Initially, they were treated at the emergency ward but later they were shifted to the surgical ward for further treatment.

Recently, the district administration ran a campaign to cull stray dogs in the district and also released the number of the dogs put down but still many stray dogs are seen around the town hall, DC office chowk,.district courts, Abu Dahbi Road and Circular Road areas.

According to Mr Ilyas, the SZMCH is also running short of the vaccine which can cater to eight patients. Many incidents of dog bite were reported in the district in the last two months where two people lost their lives too.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2019