Majid Jahangir
SRINAGAR, Nov 10: Jammu and Kashmir, which was recently awarded the best state health award, has been depriving its children of essential vitamin A doses, which is important for prevention of blindness.
The vitamin A doses, which are given to children under the age group of five years, are not available in hospitals across the Valley for the past two months. What is causing more concern among the parents is that the supplement was also not available even in the open market.
“We are shocked that despite vitamin A dose being a part of the National Immunisation Programme, it is not available in the hospitals,” said Showkat Ahmed, a resident of Anantnag district.
“Whenever we go to the hospital for administering the vitamin A dose, we are told by the staff that they don’t have the supply. The non-availability of doses raises questions on the efficiency of the Health Department.”
Apart from Anantnag, the Vitamin A doses are also not available in the hospitals of Baramulla and Kupwara district.
Vitamin A, the doctors claim, is critical for vision. While residents are worried over the non-availability of the Vitamin A doses in government hospitals, a senior officer of the Health and Family Welfare said they had already taken up the issue with the higher authorities.
“We are facing shortage of Vitamin A supplement and we have already informed the government regarding its shortage in various hospitals. But, so far new supplies have not been procured,” said an official of the Health and Family Welfare Department.
The secretary, Health, Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, however, expressed ignorance about the shortage of vitamin A supplement.
“We have not been informed by our field official about any such shortage. But now that the matter has been brought into my notice, I will look into the issue,” Dwivedi said.
(Courtesy: TNS)
