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‘Setting up TDA a waste of time, money’
* Former minister says children died in Thar because doctors, medicines were unavailable
KARACHI: Setting up of the Tharparkar Development Authority (TDA) will be a wastage of time and money and be a mistake like the previous organisation Sindh Arid Zone Development Authority (SAZDA), which failed to deliver any good to arid zones of Sindh. Javed Jabbar, a social worker and former federal minister for science and technology, addressing the meeting of Shura Hamdard Karachi chapter on the theme ‘Hunger and deaths of children in Tharparkar’ said the main reason for children’s death was non-availability of doctors, medicines and electricity, as without electricity vaccines and injunctions could not be preserved in refrigerators.
Boosting the performance of prevailing administration of Tharparkar, establishing impartial accountability system and local self-government there, which would work as an early warning system for eminent famine and sterile would be more fruitful.
He himself wrote a report on the situation of Thar, which was published in newspapers on February 20, 1985 and as a result of the report a hospital was built by the government in Mitthi, but when the present critical situation was created in Thar, this hospital was empty of medicines and doctors and only 4 doctors were present out of 32 doctors and non of them was a lady doctor.
Government should review its admission policy for medical colleges and make it compulsory for all would be doctors to serve in rural areas before getting final degrees. As a result the infection of mother transferred to children and they died in Thar, he maintained.
The basic problem of Thar is scarcity of water. Rains fall after 2-3 years, often fall in abundance in such a way that Thar sinks in water.
Thar is a back bone of Sindh in terms of agriculture produce and livestock, being a big source of income of Thar people, as 1/3 of livestock requirements of Sindh are fulfilled by the Thar’.
He was of the view if small dams were built in Thar to restore the flood and rains water, this area could become more fertile.
He said Pakistan was trailing behind in safety of babies and mothers than even neighbouring countries as five hundred children died daily in the country and disproportionate deaths occurred in Tharparkar due to lack of medical and transport facilities and failed family planning system.
Health departments should provide family planning service to the people and some Islamic scholars had already recommended a proper interval between the births of children. Health and family planning could work better in Tharparkar, but much to be desired to overcome the problems of the area, he concluded.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk