Hyderabad, April 07: Dozens of stray dogs are posing a grave threat to children and elderly people on the streets in the state everyday. While the tragic death of 13-year-old Anusha due to lack of anti-rabies vaccine (ARV) at Rajahmundry government hospital has created a flutter in the government circles with chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Thursday ordering for a detailed probe, the officials secretly admit that it is just a tip of an iceberg.
At least 10 persons are dying every year due to rabies, just because they do not have access to ARV. This coupled with the official apathy and lack of funds, is causing severe problems to the poor who cannot afford to purchase the vaccine vials costing about Rs 300-400 per dose (1 ml) in the open market. In Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) alone, 12 persons died due to rabies in the past three years and nearly 1.45 lakh persons fell victims to dog bites between 2008-11.
The officials stated that the dog menace is more in urban areas than the rural areas as the dogs live on leftover food and other garbage dumped in the vicinity of urban colonies. Though about 45,000 to 50,000 people fall prey to dog bites in GHMC area every year, the government could supply only 25,000-30,000 vials. If this could be the situation in the state capital, one can easily imagine the condition in other municipalities and municipal corporations.
Incidentally, the government has allocated Rs 198 crore for purchasing ARV vials this year but the officials could not acquire ample number of vials due to delay in supply of vaccines. Further, due to the change in suppliers, the cost of vaccine has gone up from Rs 198 to Rs 280 per vial which is causing severe burden on the state exchequer as each dog bite victim requires four to five doses of the vaccine to prevent them from contracting rabies.
Meanwhile taking serious view of the death of Anusha at Rajahmundry government hospital due to lack of Anti-Rabies Vaccine (ARV), chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy today directed the district collector of East Godavari to conduct a detailed enquiry into the incident and submit a report immediately. The State Human Rights Commission also took up the case on suo moto and asked the officials to submit a report on the incident before May 18.
Following the directions of the chief minister, East Godavari additional joint collector Rama Rao rushed to the hospital to probe into the incident. The chief minister also enquired with the officials of medical and health department about the reasons for the non-availability of important medicines like anti-rabies vaccine in the government hospital and instructed them to ensure that such things do not recur in future.
Based on newspaper reports, the Andhra Pradesh Human Rights Commission took up a suo moto case and issued notices to principal secretary for health PV Ramesh, East Godavari district health and medical officer, and the superintendent of Rajahmundry Government Hospital. SHRC acting chairman K Peda Peri Reddy directed the authorities concerned to submit a report on the incident to the commission before May 18.
—-Agencies