WHO slams state for polio mess-up

KOLKATA: The West Bengal government has come in for scathing criticism by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Union Health ministry for messing up its polio eradication campaign.
Both the agencies have pointed out that: • the state failed to fully utilise funds meant for the campaign and returned more than Rs 27 lakh last year. Money is still no problem as the Centre has channelled Rs 6.34 crore for pulse polio campaign in January.• the state fudged figures and claimed around 100 per cent coverage in the state,whereas WHO found the coverage to be around 60 per cent in worst-hit Murshidabad. • the campaign did not take off due to poor conditions of the rural health service, which caused scepticism among the people about the high-profile campaign; • the state government opted for folk forms like Jarigan to spread the message of family planning and polio eradication together, thereby raising suspicions among the illiterate that the campaign was designed to render Muslim children impotent.
A WHO study found that only 3 of 32 polio-affected children in the state this year had received 1-3 doses of routine oral drops besides BCG, DPT and triple antigen. All of them, except one, happen to be Muslim children in Murshidabad and adjoining Birbhum and Malda. A section of the Muslim community built up resistance against the polio eradication campaign, but the state government and Panchayat failed to counter it .
But West Bengal alone is not be blame. The number of polio victims in India went up to 854 this year compared to 268 last year. The next highest figure was reported in Nigeria (136) followed by Pakistan (57).
Even war-ravaged Afghanistan and Somalia reported just 8 and 2 cases respectively. WHO regional coordinator for polio eradication programme, Dr Dipankar Mukherjee, points out that Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar last reported cases in 2000. India had targeted to be free of polio by December 2000 but failed. UP tops the Indian list with about 700 cases while Bihar is second with 51. Spread of polio in Jharkhand and Orissa made the eastern region more vulnerable.West Bengal had reported only one case last year.
“General rural health care coverage is poor in West Bengal and initially no initiative was taken to reach the families in affected areas. Villagers complained that they do not get treatment and medicine at health centres. So they were suspicious about the motives of the highprofile polio campaign when the officials reached their villages,’’ said a central health official who had visited Murshidabad recently.
Health officials admitted the shortcomings in a DD show Jukti-Takko. “Our efforts to co-ordinate with experienced local doctors as well as religious leaders should have been taken up much earlier to motivate people for immunisation and detect the polio victims,’’ conceded Dr Dilip Gharai, state family welfare officer and in-charge of polio-eradication. CMO of Murshidabad, Dr Bijon Kumar Mondol, claimed there were only 308 male assistants as opposed to sanctioned posts of 714 in the district.