Punjab government launches special health campaign for flood-affected villages

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab government has started a door-to-door 'Special Health Campaign for the people in the flood-affected villages for preventive care to stave off disease outbreaks. A comprehensive and time-bound action plan for livestock has also been rolled out to mitigate the severe risks, including waterborne diseases, foot-rot and parasitic infections, as 2.53 lakh animals across 713 villages have been impacted. As many as 3.89 lakh people in 2,384 villages of the state have been affected by the devastating floods. Fifty-six people have died, and four are reported to be missing, while 23,340 persons have been evacuated. Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister, Dr Balbir Singh, issued orders for a massive mobilisation of the states entire medical fraternity, directing the deployment of all available resourcesincluding government doctors, private volunteers, Ayurveda medical officers, and MBBS internsto spearhead a Special Health Campaign in flood-affected villages. He has mandated that Civil Surgeons engage every possible medical professional to man health camps and door-to-door teams, ensuring no village is left without healthcare and preventive care to stave off disease outbreaks in the aftermath of the floods. Singh said the campaign is built on three core components, with the first being Health and Medical Camps, under which daily medical camps will be organised in all 2303 villages. In 596 villages with existing health facilities like Aam Aadmi Clinics, these centres will host the camps daily. In the remaining 1707 villages, camps will be set up in public spaces like schools and community centres for a minimum of three days, extendable based on need. The second is Door-to-Door Visits by ASHA Workers under which A force of over 11,103 ASHA workers will conduct weekly house-to-house visits in these villages to distribute essential health kits containing mosquito repellent, ORS, paracetamol, chlorine tablets, soap, and other supplies, he said. They will also screen for illnesses and raise awareness about disease prevention, he said. Singh added, As part of the last component, a rigorous fumigation and vector-control exercise will be carried out every day for the next 21 days in all affected villages. Teams will conduct indoor and outdoor fogging, larvicidal spraying, and breeding checks in households, schools, markets, and other public places to prevent outbreaks of dengue and malaria. He stated that the department has identified 85 essential drugs and 23 consumables for flood relief, which are in sufficient stock and will be made available at all health camps and facilities. Districts have also been empowered to procure any required items locally to avoid delays, he said. Meanwhile, Punjab Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries Minister, Gurmeet Singh Khudian said that the department has chalked out the action plan to protect the livestock from stagnant flood water-borne diseases, including Haemorrhagic Septicaemia (HS), Foot-Rot, Mastitis, Tick-Borne infection, Skin infection, Gastroenteritis and secondary infections and nutritional shortages. This multi-pronged campaign is focusing on mass vaccination, disinfection and emergency care to support distressed livestock farmers, he said. Khudian said that intensive cleaning and disinfection of all affected livestock shelters and feeding areas will be undertaken under the Rapid Clean-Up and Disinfection drive and Large-scale fogging operations in collaboration with the Local Government Department to control vector-borne diseases. The department will also distribute Potassium Permanganate (KMnO4) crystals to farmers free of cost for disinfecting water troughs and creating foot-dips to prevent fatal infections like Foot-Rot. All these measures will be implemented by September 21. Under the Emergency Vaccination Protocol, the department teams will administer free booster doses of Haemorrhagic Septicaemia (HS) vaccine to all susceptible livestock by September 30. Additionally, doorstep health monitoring and treatment services will be provided to ensure the well-being of animals. Teams of veterinary officers and para-staff are conducting daily village visits to monitor animals for signs of stress, injuries and disease symptoms to ensure prompt intervention and care, he added. He said that the department will also distribute essential medicines, mineral mixtures (Uromin Licks), and silage free of cost to combat nutritional deficiencies and disease, while ensuring supply and distribution of chlorine tablets with coordination of the Health Department to ensure access to safe drinking water for animals. In a bid to ensure a seamless and hassle-free paddy procurement for farmers, the government has initiated a special five-day campaign to restore all grain markets (mandis) affected by recent floods. The drive aims to clear stagnant water and silt deposits, ensuring all mandis are fully operational for the Kharif Procurement Season. Khudian stated that the intensive campaign which started today focuses on flood-affected districts where mandis suffered water-logging and siltation. He directed the Punjab Mandi Board officials and all District Mandi Officers (DMOs) to personally oversee the efforts and ensure that all impacted mandis are fully restored and operational by September 19. He said that all preliminary arrangements have been successfully completed across the state's grain markets for smooth Kharif procurement season commencing on September 16. Punjab Local Government Minister, Dr. Ravjot Singh said that a notification had been issued for measures to be taken by the Urban Local Bodies in view of recent floods. He said that the measures included cleanliness, potable water supply, preventive health related interventions to ensure restoration of normalcy in the towns of the state. Amid the severe inundation and waterlogging issues due to floods in the rivers Ravi, Beas, Satluj and Ghaggar, as well as their tributaries and heavy rains, Singh pointed out that one of the major tasks was to ensure cleanliness. He said that silt or sand, along with other debris, would be collected in towns where inundation had occurred. The State Government has decided to initiate a Special drive for cleanliness of such silt or debris as well as road gullies or city drains by ULBs by deploying the existing workforce as well as designating special teams, he added. The ULBs will make a roster for deployment of teams in the identified affected areas, where a ten-day special drive from September 14 to September 23 will be initiated. Punjab Revenue, Rehabilitation and Disaster Management Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian said that the state government has deputed nodal chairmen and members to assist in the assessment of flood damage and ensure effective execution of relief and rehabilitation works across the state. These chairmen and members will supervise distribution of relief material, assist in assessing crop loss, damage to houses and livestock and facilitate timely claims of affected families so that compensation and assistance are provided without any delay, he said.