LARKANA, March 9: The number of AIDS cases in Larkana has risen to 63 as three more cases have been detected in the district, people connected with the AIDS control programme told this correspondent on Tuesday.
Dr Farooq Rehman Soomro, the focal person of the district health office, said there were 60 confirmed cases of the disease in Larkana till December 2003. The department of pathology of the Chandka Medical College Hospital said the three new cases had been referred to the programme manager, Sindh AIDS control programme, for carrying out further tests.
Sources said one of the new AIDS patients was a heroin addict. One patient had come to Larkana from Shikarpur and another from Dokri, they said. A source said the AIDS control programme had referred back one case of AIDS with remarks that blood sample was insufficient to conduct further tests.
BY-POLLS: Around 100 candidates have filed their papers to contest the local bodies by-elections to be held in 77 out of 80 union councils in the district on March 28.
Sources in the election commission's office told this correspondent on Sunday that 209 seats of Nazims, Naib Nazims and councillors were lying vacant in the district for which different political parties had obtained nomination forms.
Three seats of union council Nazims - Qubo Saeed Khan, Bahman and Pir Bakhsh Bhutto - four seats of union council Naib Nazims - Yaro Lakhir, Ratodero-1, Hazarwah and Khandoo - were being contented while some 202 councillor seats - general (male) 19, (female) 49; peasant (male) 21, (female) 53; minority 60 - were vacant, sources said.
Preparations were being made to finalize the locations of polling stations and deployment of staff that would be completed in 120 days, they said.
