DADU: Sindh chief secretary has directed district health officers of Dadu and Jamshoro to establish medical camps in flood-hit areas of Kachho and Manchhar Lake to provide help to ailing children on an emergency basis in the wake of reports of 17 children’s death from gastroenteritis.

The chief secretary Dr Sohail Ahmed Rajput took serious notice of the children’s deaths, which started coming out of the rain-hit areas from July 7 to date during and after heavy rains, and asked Dadu DHO Dr Ahmed Ali Samejo and Jamshoro DHO Dr Vinod Kumar to bring aid to the ailing children at their doorsteps.

He directed the health officers to diagnose real cause of the children’s deaths. He would not brook any negligence by health officials in this regard and take stern action against them if the camps were not set up immediately, he warned.

He said that directives had also been issued to secretary of health, DG health Sindh, Hyderabad commissioner and Dadu deputy commissioner to monitor the operation of the medical camps and government healthcare facilities in Kachho and Manchhar Lake areas.

DHOs asked to set up medical camps

Dadu DC Syed Murtaza Ali Shah said that he had written letters to DHO Dr Ahmed Ali Samejo on Aug 2 and 5 and asked him to organise the camps and report about deaths of children and others from gastroenteritis and other diseases.

Palijo’s appeal

Ayaz Latif Palijo, president of Qaumi Awami Party, has demanded Sindh and federal governments immediately provide medical facilities, ration and other essential needs of life to rain-hit people of Kachho.

He said the situation was getting from bad to worse in Kachho region in Dadu and Jamshoro as well as Qambar-Shahdadkot districts after gastroenteritis breakout following heavy rain but health teams were still not visible in the affected areas.

Palijo said the government had not yet taken serious efforts to provide food and medical facilities to people of Kachho and ensure measures to protect human lives.

He said that leaders of both Sindh and central governments were only busy issuing statements but they had not taken any relief measures on ground.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2022