LAKKI MARWAT: Officials of the health department took advantage of the open kutcheri in remote Kot Kashmir area to highlight the usefulness of polio vaccine and immunised children of the refusing parents against the crippling disease.

The open session was convened by deputy commissioner Jehangir Azam Wazir to listen to the people’s grievances. Officials of line departments were also in attendance.

The area people demanded repair of Serai Gambila-Kot Kashmir and Kot Kashmir-Muslim Bagh roads and provision of funds for maintenance of the bridge on Gambila River and its link roads.

They complained that the only basic health unit of the area presented a deserted look at night as doctors were not available on duty. They said that patients especially women with labour pain were taken to hospitals in other towns at night.

An elder said that they had repeatedly urged the health authorities to ensure availability of a doctor and lady health visitor in the BHU at nighttime, but to no avail.

They also demanded posting of a teacher to the village’s primary school and crackdown on narcotics sellers and anti-social elements. Some villagers demanded compensation money for their rain-hit houses and replacement of old cables of power transmission line.

Mr Wazir directed officials of the line departments to resolve problems identified by the local residents.

On this occasion, he also administered polio vaccine to several children and called upon the area elders to assist the health officials to ensure coverage of all refusal cases in the rural localities.

He said that several hundred refusal cases had been reported in Kot Kashmir union council and that vaccination of children was essential to protect them from the crippling disease.

District health department’s coordinator for lady health workers programme Dr Tariq Salim and an official of partner organisation Dr Mohammad Yousaf also spoke on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, October 5th, 2019