LARKANA, July 17: A paramedics’ protest camp set up at the Ratodero Taluka Hospital was attacked by a mob on Thursday. Leaders of the paramedical staff said in a statement that the mob was led by PPP Ratodero chapter president Gul Hassan Ghanghro.

The paramedical staff were demanding transfer of Medical Superintendent of Taluka Hospital Ratodero Dr Munir Khowaja and protesting against the local PPP leaders for allegedly beating a hospital employee, Mohammad Ibrahim Mithani, a couple of days ago.

The unruly mob uprooted the camp and beat up the paramedical staff at the camp.

The incident occurred when the PPP city president and other office-bearers took out a procession in support of the medical superintendent and reached outside the hospital where the paramedics’ camp was set up.

The PPP activists were rallying against Dr Munir Khowaja’s transfer. Dr Munir is replaced with new Medical Superintendent Dr Faqeer Mohammad Khokhar on Thursday.

The mob attack created panic among the patients arrived at the hospital.

However, the new MS, Dr Faqeer, controlled the situation through negotiations with the PPP activists and the paramedics’ leaders.

The paramedics’ leaders have alleged that Dr Munir had planned the attack on their camp with the help of the PPP activists.

They announced to boycott the hospital assignments in entire Larkana district on Friday.

On the other hand, the PPP leaders have accused the paramedics for blackmailing Dr Munir. They said the paramedics were not performing duties properly. They denied their involvement in attack. Experts inspect cotton crop

SANGHAR, July 17: A team of entomologists on Thursday inspected cotton plantations in different areas of the district to assess damage to the crop from pests, especially mealybug and jassid (sabz teela).

The team comprising research officers from the entomology section of the Agriculture Research Institute of Tandojam found that the population of mealy bug and jassid in cotton plants was below economic threshold level and could be easily controlled by farmers through proper methods.

The team inspected cotton plantations in dehs Chemaro, Ubhpur, Sanghar, Kot Bijor and Lakha and held meetings with farmers. The team members said that the mealy bug was present on a number of plantations but most of the farmers had controlled the pest.— Correspondent