Annual vaccination returns of the Province of Assam : with brief explanatory notes.

  • Assam (India)
Date:
[1925]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Annual vaccination returns of the Province of Assam : with brief explanatory notes. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Inspectors and one chief vaccinator in Manipur State inspected 179,737 primary an 1 32,682 re vaccinations or 58*58 per cent, and 43*30 per cent., respectively, of the total number of vaccination of each class performed. The percentage of inspection of primary operation (23*01) done was the lowest in the Kamrup district. Amongst districts in the plains, the inspections in the districts of Goalpara (31*94) and Sibsagar (49*69) were comparatively low. 11. Vaccination in compulsory areas.—Vaccination has been made compulsory in all Municipal towns and in a few selected village areas under Act IV (B. 0.), 1873. During the year, 1,831 infants under one year of age in Municipal towns out of an estimated number of 4,137 or 44*25 per cent, were successfully vaccinated, as compared with 45*72 per cent, in 1923-21. 1'n Goalpara, Tezpur and Nowgong the results were satisfactory as almost all infants in each of these towns were successfully vaccinated. The results were very unsatisfactory in Sunamganj in which area no infant under 12 months was vaccinated during the year. In Sylhet, Karimganj and Gauhati, only 1*04, 14*44 and 12*59 per cent., respectively, of those under one year of age were vaccinated. Similar unsatisfactory returns were made in last year’s report from Sunamganj and Karimganj Municipalities. These figures do not represent the actual state of vaccination of adult population. In these areas parents show a marked reluc¬ tance to have children under one year of age vaccinated. Two thousand six hundred and four operations were performed in village areas of Baniachong in Habiganj, Derai and Pagla in Sunamganj and Beani Bazar in Karimganj subdivision of the Sylhet district to which Compulsory Vaccination Act has been extended against 2,532 opera¬ tions in the preceding year. The Karimganj Local Board has provided a permanent vaccinator for the compulsory areas in that subdivision. The Civil Surgeon recom¬ mends that Habiganj and Sunamganj Local Boards should each provide a permanent vaccinator for rural compulsory areas in those subdivisions to ensure efficient vaccina¬ tion. The total number of operations performed in rural compulsory areas in the Sibsagar district fell from 545 operations in 1923-24 to 519 in the year under report. The Chairmen of Local Boards of Jorhat and Golaghat have agreed to appoint one permanent vaccinator each for work in rural compulsory areas in their subdivisions from next year, a*ad it is hoped tlrat it will result in better vaccination in those areas. 12. Vaccine Depot.—The total number of capillary tubes loaded during the year was 617,855 against 587,386 in the preceding year. The total number of tubes issued during the year was 583,573, as compared with 557,395 in 1923-24, showing an increase of 26,178 tubes. The number of calves inoculated during the year was 482 and lymph was taken from 421 calves, the remaining 61 calves being rejected—25 for failure of operation, 3 for i’lness and 33 for ulceration and unsatisfactory vesicle against 69 calves rejected in the preceding year. The total cost of working of the depot was Rs. 14,331 as compared with Rs. 13,561 in the preceding year, the increase is mainly under establishment due to a senior Sub-Assistant Surgeon being placed in subordinate charge. During the year, 93,169 tubes were issued by value payable post to various tea estates and the Manipur State, and a sum of Rs. 5,809-5-0 was credited into the Treasury. If this amount is deducted from the total dep6t cost, the cost of working the depot would be Rs. 8,551-11-0 only. Major A. F. Babonau, c.i.e., o.b.e., i.m.s., held charge of the depot throughout the year. The subordinate charge was hedd by Sub- Assistant Surgeon Narayan Chandra Das Gupta from the beginning of the year to the 18th June 1924 and Sub-Assistant Surgeon Narendra Nath Dam from 19th June 1924 to the end of the year. 13. Cost of the Department.—The total cost of the department was Rs. 89,4S4-7-6 as compared with Rs. 86,373-15-10, showing an increase of Rs. 3,110-7-8 which is mainly due to the appointment of additional vaccinators by local bodies to deal with small-pox outbreak. The average cost of each successful case of vaccination was 4 annas 4 pies, as compared with 4 annas 5 pies in 1923 -24. 14. General.—The great percentage of vaccinators is employed for the cold weather months only. The average number of vaccinations performed by each vacci¬ nator was 878 during the year. This number does not compare favourably with those of other provinces, but conditions are different. A large percentage should ha permanent vaccinators so that epidemics during the hot weather could be adequately dealt with Experiments are this year now being made to send vaccine to districts in ice in Thermos Flasks so that it may reach there without losing its potency which it otherwise would do during the hot months. J. B. HANAFIN, Major, I.M.S., Off °. Director of Public Healthy Assam,