A two-and-a-half-month-old child died after a few hours of taking polio dose and other vaccines at a vaccination camp held here on Wednesday.
The incident occurred at Kajala Adivasi Basti located on the side of the Paradip-Daitary Expressway.
Chinmayee Senapati, Health Worker of the Shyamsundarpur Balia Sub Health Centre, said Anil, son of Ratha Murmu and Kabita, had been administered Oral Polio Drop (OPD-1), Rotavirus vaccine and Penta virus vaccine at the Halpur School. After vaccination, the child was sent to the Balia sub-health centre to get Inactivated Polio Virus (IPV) vaccine.
“Immunisation camp personnel failed to provide fever syrup as it was not available with them. My son got a fever and, at around 3 am, he started gasping and died before I could take him to the hospital,” stated the child’s father. The matter came to the fore when Ratha Murmu lodged an FIR at the Kendrapada Sadar police station here with the above allegations. The police have registered a case and started investigation, informed IIC Nilakantha Patra.
The police also seized the body and sent it for autopsy.
“I have asked the CDMO to ascertain the exact reason behind the child’s death. legal action would be taken if anybody found guilty,” said the IIC. When contacted, CDMO Niranjan Swain said the allegation has come to his notice. Though no other children, who were administered polio vaccine from the vial fell sick, have developed any complication, he would conduct an investigation into the allegation.
“We have also been waiting for the autopsy report to ascertain the exact reason behind the death,” said Swain.