BAHAWALNAGAR: A man who was bitten by a rabid dog around a month ago died on Monday allegedly because of not being administered rabies vaccine in Nowshera area of Minchinabad.

As per locals, the victim, Zahoor, died around a month after he was bitten by a rabid dog dog because he was not administered rabies vaccine. They added that he had started showing rabies symptoms, including hydrophobia, a few days after he suffered dog bite.

They alleged that because of lack of measures taken by health department and local administration the dog bite cases were on the rise in the city.

They demanded that officials concerned should take notice of the matter.

Minchinabad tehsil headquarters hospital medical superintendent was not available for comments.

On the other hand, Minchinabad Assistant Commissioner (AC) Muzammil Ilyas claimed that Zahoor did not die because of rabid dog bite, nor because of unavailability of rabies vaccines. The AC claimed that Zahoor was actually injured watching a dog fight when a dog had bitten him on the arm and other parts of body.

He said that instead of shifting him to hospital immediately, those present there simply dressed Zahoor’s wounds and sent him home.

The AC said that six days after the incident when Zahoor’s condition worsened, he was taken to the Mayo Hospital, Lahore, where he received treatment. However, he later succumbed to his injuries.

He said that for the past three months, a campaign to eliminate rabid dogs was going on in Minchinabad and around 140 rabid dogs had been killed so far.

Minchinabad SHO Abdul Razzaq, however, claimed that no dog fight was held in his jurisdiction.

He also claimed that Zahoor was bitten by a rabid dog, but instead of seeking medical help and getting vaccinated, he resorted to self-medication that resulted in his death.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2020