The Vice President of state unit of Congress party Surya Kant Dhasmana met the director general (DG) state health services, Dr Ravindra Thapliyal on Tuesday and expressed anguish at non availability of anti rabies vaccine (ARV) in Uttarakhand.
In the meeting, Dhasmana expressed surprise at the fact that the ARV is not available in Dehradun and other parts of the state from last three months but the state health department and the government are paying no attention over this important issue. He said that the number of victims of dog and monkey bites in Dehradun and other areas of the state is quite large and in absence of vaccine people are forced to buy the life saving vaccine from black market or get is arranged from neighboring Uttar Pradesh at high prices. Dhasmana said chief minister is heading the state health department and absence of ARV has exposed the state of health service in Uttarakhand.
In his response, the DG accepted that absence of ARV is causing problems to people. He said that the vaccine is imported and supply is affected from last few months.
In the Government Doon Medical College ( GDMC) Hospital alone more than 125 patients visit every day for this vaccine from different parts of the state. In absence of the vaccine they had to get the life saving vaccine from the black market at exorbitant prices.
The ARV is administered intra dermal or intra muscular four times in a fixed schedule on an animal bite victim. The vaccine is injected on 0, 3 ,7 and 28 day of the animal bite. The vaccine is injected free of cost in the government hospitals where there is facility of cold storage.