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5 million feared sick over next 12 weeks in flooded areas due to disease outbreak

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  • People likely to get diarrhea, cholera, gastroenteritis, typhoid, dengue and malaria.
  • Children at risk of getting measles, which can spread like fire among the displaced populations, and polio.
  • A disease outbreak would initially require medicines and medical supplies worth Rs1 billion.

Health experts have sounded the alarm regarding the outbreak of disease in flood-affected areas, estimating around five million people to fall sick in the next four to 12 weeks, The News reported.

People in the flooded areas of Sindh, Balochistan, southern Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are likely to get diarrhea, cholera, gastroenteritis, typhoid and vector-borne diseases like dengue and malaria, the health experts warned on Tuesday.

It is estimated that a disease outbreak would initially require medicines and medical supplies worth Rs1 billion, they said, and urged donors, philanthropists and common people to donate these after consulting health experts and officials of rescue and welfare organisations.

“Of the 33 million people affected due to monsoon rains and floods across Pakistan, it is estimated that around five million people, including children, would get sick due to outbreak of water-borne and vector-borne diseases in the next four to 12 weeks.

“As there is no clean drinking water available in the flood-ravaged areas, there is a risk of outbreak of diarrhea, cholera, typhoid, gastroenteritis, dengue and malaria,” renowned public health expert and Vice-Chancellor of the Health Services Academy (HSA) Islamabad Dr Shahzad Ali told The News on Tuesday.

He said children would be more vulnerable due to weak immunity and warned that an outbreak of acute watery diarrhea, and other water-borne diseases could kill hundreds of children and adults if immediate preventive measures were not adopted.

“There is an urgent need to vaccinate all the people in the flood affected areas against typhoid-cholera. This vaccine is available in the country and it can be deployed to prevent deaths from typhoid and cholera in Sindh and Balochistan. Similarly, prophylactic treatment of malaria should also be started to prevent deaths from the vector-borne disease,” Dr Khan said.

Urging the authorities to make anti-snake venom and anti-rabies vaccines available in abundance, he said hundreds of incidents of snake-bite and dog-bite had been reported from KP, Sindh and Balochistan.

Former health director-general and an expert on infectious diseases Dr Rana Muhammad Safdar was of the opinion that children in the flood affected areas were the most vulnerable and needed immediate medical attention, saying immunisation programmes of the provinces should reach out to unvaccinated children.

“In addition to diarrhea and other water-borne diseases, children are at the risk of getting measles which can spread like fire among the displaced populations. Polio is another threat and unfortunately, we have seen wild poliovirus 1 circulating in many cities of KP and Punjab, while it can travel to the other cities where it has not yet been found,” Dr Safdar said.

On the other hand, officials of the welfare organisations working in the flood-hit areas said a large number of people, including women and children, had already started suffering from water-borne infections, including diarrhea, gastroenteritis, cholera, fever, flu, allergy, scabies and other fungal skin ailments.

“We also believe that around Rs1 billion would be required initially to meet the medical needs of sick people in the flood-hit areas as hundreds of people are getting sick due to water-borne and vector-borne diseases in these areas,” said Sufyan Ahmed, Managing Director of the Al-Khidmat Health Foundation, who is coordinating with the charity and welfare organisations for relief operations in the flood-hit areas across Pakistan.

According to Ahmed, in the absence of any guidelines, a huge quantity of unwanted medicines were being donated which go to waste or are misused in the name of flood victims.

“In these circumstances, we have prepared guidelines for relief operations with the assistance from Pakistan Society of Health-System Pharmacists. These guidelines provide a complete list of medicines, medical supplies and other stuff that is needed by the patients in distress at the moment,” Ahmed said.

He then referred to the guideline which carried details of several medicines for anti-infectives (oral), cough and cold preps, pain/colic, fever management (oral), pregnancy or female care, antacids, wound dressing, vomiting/nausea (oral), anti-diarrheal (oral) and others as basic first aid supplies. The list also identified several medicine supplies for the healthcare units, which are required in the flood hit areas.

The health authorities, he said, were also coordinating with the local pharmaceuticals and charity and welfare organisations to help them reach out to the affected areas in dire need of medical supplies.

“One such engagement was facilitated between local pharmaceutical company Pharmevo and Al-Khidmat Foundation and the former is providing Rs5 million medicines to the latter for the affected areas of Sindh and Balochistan in the first phase,” he said. “It’s a gigantic task and the government alone cannot handle the situation. So we are engaging all individuals and organisations and channelising the operation for effective results.”

The fresh initiative, he said, was aimed at giving patients access to basic clinical services for their medicinal needs, better than what the local infrastructure has to offer in a very disastrous situation.

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Weather update: Lahore and other Punjabi cities are expected to have rain.

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According to the Met Department, Islamabad and the surrounding areas will get partly overcast weather with a risk of rain.

There will be a brief break from the dry weather in some places due to light rain, a representative said.

Parts of Punjab, however, are probably going to continue to have fog and pollution. Heavy haze and fog are predicted in Sargodha, Sheikhupura, Faisalabad, Multan, and Rahim Yar Khan, while major towns impacted include Lahore, Kasur, Okara, Sialkot, Hafizabad, Narowal, and Gujranwala.

Because visibility may be poor in some places, residents and travelers have been warned to exercise caution.

The prognosis also suggests that places like Lahore, Attock, Murree, and Rawalpindi may get overnight rain. Additionally, northern regions including Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kohistan, Peshawar, and Kohat are predicted to see rainfall.

With no notable change anticipated in the upcoming days, Sindh and Balochistan, on the other hand, are likely to continue to see hot and dry weather.

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14 are detained by Punjab police in an anti-smog operation.

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14 people were detained and 91 FIRs were lodged in the last 24 hours, according to a Punjab police spokeswoman.

Furthermore, for failing to follow the SOPs, 458 people received fines totaling 8.28 lacs, and 33 more received warnings.

According to the spokeswoman, 359 cases involving smoke-emitting cars and 38 reports of crop residue burning were reported.

In addition, there were 24 other recorded breaches, 27 pertaining to brick kilns, and 3 cases of industrial activity infractions.

There are 2627 cases against the 2161 people who were arrested for violating government SOPs.

21924 people have been fined more than 5 crore 9 lacs, according to the Punjab police.

An increased crackdown has been ordered by the Inspector General of Police (IG) to shield the public from smog.

Sardar Saleem Haider Khan, the governor of Punjab, has also called for the province to declare an emergency due to the deteriorating smog.

According to the governor, air pollution in the majority of the province’s districts has gotten out of hand. “There are a lot of people who are ill and getting admitted to hospitals,” he stated.

According to Sardar Saleem Haider, closing educational institutions, entertainment parks, and colleges couldn’t provide fruitful outcomes. “Traders oppose markets being closed by 8:00 PM.”

He said that majority of Punjab’s districts and Lahore are experiencing an increase in pollution. He suggested declaring a short-term emergency to stop smog.

The governor went on to say, “To control the smog, the institutions must agree.”

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41.91 million Train travel by Pakistanis in 2023–2024

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Around 41.91 million people rode trains in 2023–2024, according to Pakistan Railways, an increase of 6.51 million from the 35.40 million passengers in 2022–2023.

In fiscal year 2023-24, passenger earnings remained at Rs. 47.712 billion, exceeding the budgetary objective by Rs. 8.712 billion, according to figures supplied by Pakistan Railways. Additionally, earnings have increased by Rs. 13.799 billion more than they did in the preceding fiscal year, 2022–2023.

The report also showed that in fiscal year 2023-24, the total revenue from other sources, including scrap, property and land, military traffic, and freight, was Rs. 39.803 billion.

The administrators of Pakistan Railways are optimistic that a further increase in railway passenger volume is in store for the coming year.

“The department has made special arrangements to facilitate passengers at stations and in trains en route, including modern dining cars, mobile charging sockets in coaches, and water dispensers in coaches to provide passengers with clean drinking water,” the statement continued.

The Pakistan Railways department has also constructed information desks to assist and guide passengers, digital display boards to show train arrivals and departures, ticket vending machines (TVM) to sell tickets, and ramps and wheelchairs for those with disabilities.

Pakistan Railways is implementing various measures to increase train punctuality, including removing speed restrictions through special track maintenance, improving the signaling system through computerized interlocking and solar system installation, removing locomotive failures through timely maintenance, and introducing new passenger coaches.

In order to handle passenger complaints, the department has set up a cutting-edge call center under the Railway Automated Booking and Travelling Assistance (RABTA) program. In addition, a complaint register is available at stations and on trains, and passengers can file their grievances online at Pakistan Railways.

Contractors who are discovered to be selling inferior goods face fines and warnings. The contractor’s contract with Pakistan Railways is terminated when three fines are received,” it continued.

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