TAXILA, Sept 16:  People from different walks of life, especially patients have urged the district health authorities to launch a crackdown on fake dentists in all the areas of the city.

It has been observed that fake dentists are spreading spurious and fatal diseases in the name of inexpensive dental treatment, in all the areas of the city, while the local administration and health authorities are in deep slumber on the issue due to reason best known to them.

It was revealed that around 40 quacks are also running their clinics with impunity and when the health condition of any patient deteriorates, they send him to the hospital of their choice.

It has been observed that a group of quacks are seen doing their business of extracting teeth in the areas of Faisal Shaheed road, railway road, HMC road, Museum road, Thatta Khalil road, Nawababad, Asifabad and Jameelabad and other vicinities.

Patients were of the view that these fake dentists are illiterate and cannot even write their names but are playing with the lives of people, under the garb of dentistry.

It was observed that these quacks mentioned names of renowned and qualified dentists of different public and private sector hospitals of the area but quacks and un-qualified people treat these patients on the pretext of qualified dentists, said residents.

It was further learnt that their business is thriving through advertisements.

They charge patients nominal rates, but inject in their teeth a fatal disease instead of curing the disease.

Their apparatuses are infected and septic, but they use the same for all patients’ infections with deadly diseases like Hepatitis C and B. A fairly large number of health department employees are also running clinics in several areas.

A quack dentist who requested not to be named told this correspondent that they kept health officials ‘happy’ by fulfilling their illegal demands in return for running their clinics freely and without check.

Dr Imran Younas, former president young doctors association Taxila chapter, while talking to this reporter said that many areas of the city have been neglected in the anti-quackery campaigns, which was injustice with the residents of these areas, particularly the areas of low-income groups of society.

Talking to this reporter, MS THQ hospital Dr Mohammad Shahid has said that treatment from quacks sometimes had very devastating results.

He said quacks claim that their medicines had no side effects but patients often used those medicines for longer durations, which might cause resistance to drugs.

When contacted, drug inspector Muneer Ahmed said that checking of dental clinics does not fall in his jurisdiction and only district health officials from Rawalpindi are entitled to take legal action against these quack dentists.