JACOBABAD, Dec 15: Out of 1,500 women and children, 30 per cent were found to be carriers of hepatitis when their blood was screened at a free medical camp here on Monday.

As many as 65 people were diagnosed with hepatitis-B and 25 with hepatitis-C.

The adviser to the Sindh chief minister on health affairs, Noman Saigal, visited the one-day medical camp. A total of 45 doctors and paramedical staff attended the camp.

Mr Saigal urged the doctors to use new syringes.

The camp was extended for another day due to a large turnout of people.

Later, the adviser visited the Jacobabad Civil Hospital and met patients who complained of non-availability of medicines and said doctors did not check them properly.

Mr Saigal assured the patients that they would be provided with medicines and directed the civil surgeon to ensure availability of drugs at the hospital.

He told journalists that the disease was spreading rapidly in the area and if effective measures were not taken by the government, the patients could expire.

BORDER FORCE: The Sindh government will establish a border police force and 1500 jawans would be recruited by January 2004 to curb the growing lawlessness along the Sindh-Balochistan border, official sources said.

The new border force will be deployed along the 400 kilometre long border may reduce the bloody incident in the area. Meanwhile, federal government has sanctioned Rs600 million to create the border force. Three police stations and 25 police pickets would be created. Of this, Rs110 million have been released as first tranche. For this purpose, 1500 police constables and ASIs will be recruited and deployed at Sindh-Balochistan border to curb the lawlessness.