With the number of H1N1 deaths crossing the 200 mark in Rajasthan, the State government has asked volunteers going door to door to administer polio drops on Sunday to gather information about swine flu.
State Health Minister Rajendra Rathore has passed on this instruction to Collectors, Chief Medical and Health Officers and all those involved with the campaign.
Mr. Rathore said over 26 lakh people had been screened across the State and all efforts were being made to ensure there was no shortage of beds, drugs and doctors.
Appeal to CMMeanwhile, the civil society groups and health activists have appealed to the Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje to declare swine flu outbreak an ‘epidemic and a notifiable disease’, and ensure uninterrupted supply of drugs.
Immediate budgetary allocations should be made and actions be taken by the government to strengthen and revamp its public health machinery and also to equip itself with infrastructure and facilities to cope with similar emergency situations in the future, voluntary and civil society groups under the banner of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan said in a memorandum.
“This is extremely alarming and the whole situation raises innumerable questions on the preparedness and the capacity of the State health machinery to cope with disease outbreaks despite the fact that cases of swine flu, dengue and chikungunya have been recorded in huge numbers year after year now. However, Rajasthan just does not seem to be learning lessons from previous outbreaks of these diseases,” the memorandum read.
