GOALPARA, July 23 - The district administration is standing up to the post-flood challenges and effectively coordinating with all the stakeholders and monitoring the services provided to the affected people. Even as the flood water is receding, the people have yet to come to the terms with the extensive damage caused. The district administration on the other hand has been taking all possible measures to save lives and provide emergency relief to all flood victims.
Talking to this correspondent, the Deputy Commissioner Varnali Deka said that the district administration is making all-out efforts to prevent any outbreak of contagious diseases like typhoid, cholera, diarrhoea, measles, jaundice etc., even as the people have begun to return to their homes. She added that many medical teams have been deployed and are doing round the clock duties in the relief camps. Several mobile medical units consisting of doctors, nurses and paramedics have been looking after the remote areas around Lakhipur and Jaleswar. Ambulances have been stationed at the health centres to address medical emergencies.
Also, the district administration has roped in the services of the private nursing homes, besides the Health department for organising free health camps in the relief camps and flood- affected areas.
As for containing serious diseases like Japanese Encephalitis (JE) or for Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), Deka said that diagnostic facilities have been strengthened in the Goalpara civil hospital for confirmed cases and blood specimens are being regularly collected from the people, especially in the non-endemic areas for detection of JE virus and to prevent it from taking the epidemic form. She also mentioned that MPHW and ASHA workers have been tracking suspected cases of fever for timely referral to the health centres and regular fogging is taking place in and around the relief camps and in endemic areas to prevent dengue and malaria.
Further, the deputy commissioner is conducting surprise visits to various health centres where she is taking action against erring officials by issuing show-cause notices to those found absenting from duties.
Further Deka said that all stakeholders including NGOs, student organisations and conscious citizens have been made aware on public health promotion activities, so that they can check the outbreak of any diseases in the affected areas.
At the relief camps, focus has been given to sanitation and hygiene and inmates have been provided with drinking water in the form of water pouches besides baby food. Hot-cooked meal has been also served in different relief camps under Supplementary Nutrition Programme by the Social Welfare department. She informed that the district administration is supplying water purification tablets, getting bleaching powder and phenyl sprayed in all the relief camps and in the affected areas of the town. Temporary toilets have been dug to discourage open defecation in and around the camp sites and hand tubewells and water tanks have been installed for continuous supply of safe drinking water.
Talking to this correspondent, president of the Goalpara Nagarik Samittee, Mahmood Hussein praised the relief works of the district administration during the flood and the way the Deputy Commissioner effectively coordinated and energised the efforts of various departments with other stakeholders.
