Panic over deworming tablets

By Our Staff Reporter

ANANTAPUR, FEB. 17. Rumours on the health condition of about 7.5 lakh children in the age group of two to 12 years who were administered chewable deworming tablets in the district today spread like a wildfire creating panic among people, particularly among parents. However, there was no serious health problem to any of the child except complaints of nausea or vomitting sensation.

About 90 per cent of the target children were administered the deworming tablets, `Albendazol-400 mg', in the district. The programme was stopped immediately once the rumours set in. The tablets were administered as part of `Pushti' under the `Chinnarulu Sukheebhava' programme.

At least a few children at almost all the 3,900 centres where the tablets were administered complained of vomitting sensation and nausea feeling within an hour of administering the tablet. Rumours that some children had died spread like a wildfire creating panic among parents. Most of the parents rushed to the schools where their children were studying and hurried their children to the nearest hospitals.

Parents of the children made a beeline to the Government hospitals and public health centres. They were seen questioning doctors whether the medicine was given to `kill' their children. Reports of children complaining of vomitting sensation poured in from every nook and corner of the district.

Angry parents lost control at several places and even tried to attack teachers and other officials. At Somandepalli and Dharmavaram, the MROs were threatened of dire consequences by the parents if anything happens to their children. The municipal commissioner of Dharmavaram was also caught in a similar situation.

At Pamidi, the parents forced the doctors to give anti-reaction medicine to all the children who were brought there. The villagers even manhandled a doctor at Tanakallu when the latter tried to explain that there would be no harm to the children. The teachers of a school were attacked by the parents at Settipalli near Penukonda.

Meanwhile, the District Collector, Mr. Somesh Kumar, termed the rumours `unfortunate'. He stated that there was no harm to any child who was administered the deworming tablet. Thorough chemical analysis was also done to the drug samples including on the side-effects before the tablets were dispatched for administration, he clarified.

The children's specialist at Anantapur general hospital, Dr. Sivaji, and the District Medical and Health Officer, Dr. B.V.N. Chowdary, stated that there was no harm from the deworming drug. They reasoned that lack of food or excessive food or long exposure of the children to the sun could have led to reactions like vomitting sensation and nausea.

The district administration has already taken up an exercise to find out the reasons which led to the reaction among a few children.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : Panther's carcass found in tribal village
Next     : Unified portal on the cards, says CM