ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal and provincial authorities have completed arrangements under dengue action plans to prevent the spread of the mosquito-borne disease and keep people safe during the monsoon season starting next week, officials confirmed on Saturday.
There is currently no cure or vaccine for dengue fever, which can lead to death in its most severe form. Dengue fever often results in intense flu-like symptoms, severe headaches, pain behind the eyes, full-body aches, high fever, nausea, vomiting, swollen glands and rashes.
Dengue fever is endemic to Pakistan, which experiences year-round transmission with seasonal peaks. This year’s first dengue-related death was reported on June 3 in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province.
Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has ordered the relevant authorities to “strictly” implement the dengue prevention standard operating procedures after about nine cases were reported in Pakistan’s capital.
“The anti-dengue plan formulated should be implemented diligently,” he was quoted in a statement as telling the chairman of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Islamabad chief commissioner earlier today. “Ensure rapid drainage of rainwater from low-lying areas.”
The CDA chairman informed Naqvi an anti-dengue working group had been established in Islamabad’s peripheries along with neighboring Rawalpindi, adding the administrations of the two cities would work “as a team” to ensure the prevention of the disease.
“The federal health ministry along with the Capital Development Authority and district administration have already started implementing preventive measures in Islamabad and its surrounding areas,” Ahmed Shah, a health ministry spokesperson, told Arab News.
He said teams were working in the field, and awareness campaigns were prepared to sensitize the public about the issue.
Similar measures have been taken by authorities in the four provinces of the country.
STEPS TAKEN BY PROVINCES
Dr. Somia Iqtadar, Secretary General Dengue Expert Advisory Group of Punjab, said the provincial dengue control program had started working on disposing of water storage places, conducting house-to-house visits, early larvaE detection, and giving special attention to hotspots such as junkyards, construction sites and graveyards.
“These areas have been categorized into high-risk and low-risk zones,” she told Arab News.
“If a case is reported in a hospital, a surveillance system ensures teams check 12 houses on each side of the affected person’s residence to identify additional cases and prevent further spread by isolating affected individuals,” she said, adding that all districts were following the same protocol and were instructed to complete their preparations under the district health officers and district administrations.
“The Punjab Information Technology Board has prepared a dashboard, where every case from the province is reported and weekly analyzes are conducted to develop future strategies,” she added.
Dr. Syed Mushtaq Ahmed Shah, deputy director general vector-borne diseases of the Sindh government, said 2,880 public and private hospitals were prepared to handle influx of dengue patients in the province.
“So far, only one death of a 75-year-old has occurred who had already multiple health issues,” he told Arab News.
Shah added all districts and municipal administrations had been instructed to remove open water storage and display banners in public places to sensitize people.
Additionally, he said around 550 students were educated about the subject before summer vacation to help prevent the spread of dengue in their households.
“A plan for mass spraying in hotspots across different districts, headed by deputy commissioners, has also been prepared,” he added.
Discussing the measures taken by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the provincial health ministry spokesperson, Attaullah Khan, said the authorities had held extensive trainings for the purpose.
“The dengue action program, approved in March, included training across all provincial districts, removing open water storage in public places, chemical and mechanical sweeping and indoor residual spraying (IRS),” Attaullah Khan, a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) health ministry spokesperson, told Arab News.
To prevent the spread of the disease, he said a multi-sectoral approach had been adopted, focusing on timely disposal of dengue larvae and enhancing public health services.
“The Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response System will monitor the outbreak, and a Dengue Control Room will be established under the Directorate General Health Services,” he said, adding that District Rapid Response Teams had been trained, communities sensitized and awareness materials prepared.
“All district headquarters hospitals have been instructed to prepare separate dengue wards to handle any patient influx,” he added.
Dr. Fahim Afridi, additional director general of health in Balochistan, said the provincial administration had prepared its dengue action plan with the help of all stakeholders, including municipal committees, livestock department and district administrations.
He said authorities were working on a multipronged strategy, and implementation was underway.
“Our districts of Kech, Gwadar and Lasbella are dengue-prone areas, and we have conducted interventions in all of these places,” he told Arab News.
“Our teams have carried out door-to-door campaigns, taken water samples and eliminated larvae wherever they were found,” he said, adding the health ministry had also provided nets to the district administration for distribution among people.
An advisory published by Pakistan’s National Institute of Health last year said a total of 52,929 cases and 224 deaths from dengue were reported in the country in 2021, while there were approximately 79,007 confirmed cases of dengue with 149 deaths in 2022, with the surge in cases following unprecedented flooding that began in mid-June 2022. In 2023, Pakistan reported 3,019 suspected cases and 8 deaths from dengue.
The virus has been surging worldwide, helped by climate change. In barely six months, countries in North and South America have already broken calendar-year records for dengue cases.
The World Health Organization declared an emergency in December, and Puerto Rico declared a public health emergency in March.
Dengue remains less common in the continental United States, but in the 50 states so far this year there have been three times more cases than at the same point last year.
Pakistan ramps up dengue prevention efforts ahead of monsoon season
https://arab.news/r59kc
Pakistan ramps up dengue prevention efforts ahead of monsoon season
- First dengue-related death was reported in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province in the first week of June
- Authorities are trying to control the disease by ensuring rapid rainwater drainage from low-lying areas
Pakistan sets up National Emergencies Operation Center as monsoon begins
- Public advised to download “Pak NDMA Disaster Alert” mobile app for timely alerts
- Disaster authority issues precautionary measures against urban flooding in cities
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top disaster management authority has established a National Emergencies Operation Center (NEOC) in anticipation of intense cloud bursts and moderate to heavy rainfall expected to start tomorrow, Tuesday, as the country enters the monsoon season.
A statement from the PM office said on Monday the NEOC would use latest tools and technologies, including real-time satellite feeds, to anticipate disasters up to three months in advance and was run by a multidisciplinary team of experts employing the power of geographic information systems (GIS), remote sensing, climatology, meteorology, seismology, hydrology, and data sciences to monitor and analyze global and local hazards.
“NEOC has been reported a significant activity from the eastern Indian side, indicating intense cloud bursts that may hit Pakistani areas,” the PM Office said on Monday.
“Repeated early warnings have been shared with all provinces, and rainfall is likely to start over the upper catchments of all major rivers particularly Sutlej, Ravi and Chenab from July 2, 2024.”
The disaster management authority had also issued an alert regarding lightning expected in different cities of Punjab and the federal capital, Islamabad, during July 5-7, which could lead to rapid rises in water levels, flash flooding events, and urban flooding in metropolitan areas, the statement said.
” NDMA warns that the anticipated rainfall poses a significant risk of low to medium level flooding in River Sutlej, with water levels expected to reach low flood levels (approximately 50,000 cusecs) by July 5 and high flood levels (approximately 120,000 cusecs) by July 10,” the PM Office added.
The disaster management authority has been working closely with the federal and provincial departments to ensure preparedness and response to any potential emergency, the statement said, advising the public to remain vigilant and follow instructions from local authorities as well as download the “Pak NDMA Disaster Alert” for timely alerts, weather reports and flood updates.
“Protect yourself from floodwater, avoid contact with it, which may be contaminated or contain debris or electrical wires,” it added. “Develop an evacuation plan with your family, identify a safe location, and create an emergency kit with essential supplies.”
The disaster management authority also advised travelers to avoid unnecessary travel in case of heavy rainfalls and likely floods.
Pakistan is consistently ranked among the world’s worst-affected countries from climate change. Unprecedented rainfall and melting of glaciers in June 2022 triggered massive floods across the country that killed nearly 1,700 people and inflicted damages worth $3 billion. Scientists and experts attributed the floods to the adverse effects of climate change.
Pakistan also went through a severe heat wave in May and June, which saw temperatures in some regions rise to above 50 degrees Celsius.
Dispute over death toll as Karachi’s second-longest heat wave ends after eight days
- Government reports 45 deaths, relief agencies claim morgues received three times more bodies than usual during heat wave
- Chief Meteorologist says this year’s heat wave the longest since June 2015 when 2,000 people died from heat-induced causes
KARACHI: Pakistan’s Chief Meteorologist Dr. Sardar Sarfaraz said on Monday an eight-day heat wave in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi was over with at least 45 dead, while relief agencies and health experts said the death toll was likely much higher.
Pakistan has been in the grips of a heat wave since May, with temperatures rising above 52 degrees Celsius (125.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in the southern province of Sindh, of which the port city of Karachi is the capital. For over a week now, Karachi has seen an unusual spike in temperatures, with the mercury rising above 40 °C (104 °F) throughout last weekend and reaching 47.2 °C (117 °F) on June 25.
“As of today, the sea breeze has been restored and the heat wave is over,” Dr. Sarfaraz told Arab News. “During four of the eight heat wave days, temperatures reached up to 42°C but felt like 54°C due to low-pressure formation over southeast Karachi.”
Dr. Sarfaraz noted that this heat wave was the longest in Karachi since June 2015 when a “killer” episode claimed over 2,000 lives. He said 45 people had died in Karachi during this heat wave.
However, Muhammad Amin from the Edhi Foundation charity, one of the largest in Pakistan, estimated that the death toll from heat-induced causes was much higher given the number of bodies received at morgues.
“We have received 1,309 dead bodies since June 19, which is a significant increase, almost three times higher, than our average during this period,” Amin said, although he was unable to confirm if all the bodies received by Edhi were of people who had died due to complications from the heat wave.
Dr. Irfan Siddiqui, the head of emergency services at Jinnah Hospital, one of the biggest government-operated hospitals in Karachi, said the figures compiled by the government were authentic.
“We have reported these figures [45] after ascertaining the cause of death. One cannot attribute a death to a certain condition on mere speculations,” he said about the Edhi estimates.
However, Dr. Siddiqui acknowledged that some heat wave deaths may have gone unreported.
“While one cannot rely solely on figures from rescue services, the government’s data may also be inaccurate,” Dr. Abdullah Muttaqi, a senior health practitioner, told Arab News. “If morgues are receiving a large number of bodies during this period, heat likely played a role, but without medical confirmation of the cause, these figures cannot be cited.
“In the case of the government, figures are likely underreported, not properly documented, and inaccurately presented.”
Dr. Qaiser Sajjad, former general secretary of the Pakistan Medical Association, also said morgues had been receiving more bodies than usual and advised that the “government should sit with rescue services and rationalize its data.”
Pakistan is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change. In 2022, devastating rains and floods killed 1,739 people, destroyed 2 million homes, and submerged as much as one-third of the country under water. The deluges also caused more than $30 billion in damages to Pakistan’s already cash-strapped economy.
Three security officials, doctor killed in gun attacks, snooker club set on fire in northwest Pakistan
- Islamabad blames ongoing surge in militant attacks on Pakistani Taliban militants it says are operating from Afghanistan
- Afghan Taliban rulers in Kabul say violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue, it does not allow militants to operate on its territory
PESHAWAR: Three security personnel were killed by unidentified gunmen in northwestern Pakistan in the last two days, police said on Monday, while a doctor was shot dead and a snooker club set on fire.
Islamabad blames an ongoing surge in militant attacks on neighboring Afghanistan, saying Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, leaders have taken refuge there and run camps to train insurgents to launch attacks inside Pakistan. The Afghan Taliban rulers in Kabul say rising violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue for Islamabad and it does not allow militants to operate on its territory.
The TTP pledges allegiance to, and gets its name from, the Afghan Taliban, but is not directly a part of the group. Its stated aim is to impose Islamic religious law in Pakistan, as the Taliban have done in Afghanistan.
Police officer Naheed Khan said on Monday “well-armed” militants mounted an overnight attack on the Takhta Baig check post in the northwestern Khyber district, leaving a Frontier Constabulary (FC) paramilitary soldier and a police official dead.
“The security personnel deputed on the check post repulsed the attack after an intense exchange of fire, forcing the militants to flee,” he added.
In a separate incident, Rohanzeb Khan, District Police Officer (DPO) in the North Waziristan district, said unidentified gunmen shot dead a police officer of the Special Branch department late on Sunday night.
“Masked gunmen riding two motorbikes shot dead a police officer of the Special Branch in Eidak, a town on the outskirts of Miran Shah, the headquarters of the [North Waziristan] district,” Khan said.
Dr. Abdul Rasheed, who worked at the District Hospital Khar in the Bajaur tribal district, was separately gunned down by unidentified gunmen on Sunday, police said.
“The incident of the doctor’s killing took place in Mohmand,” police officer Ajab Khan told Arab News.
In the Sultankhel Market of Khyber district, police said on Monday a snooker club was set on fire and a warning note left that it should not be rebuilt. The club had been built by journalist Khalil Jibran who was gunned down by unidentified gunmen last month.
While no group has claimed responsibility for the latest violence, officials widely suspect the TTP.
Attacks against security targets and the assassination of police and government officials have been on the rise in recent months in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, with most assaults claimed by the TTP.
Last week, unidentified gunmen abducted 13 laborers in the northwestern district of Tank but released nine, police said. Separately last month, two soldiers from Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps were killed in clashes between security forces and militants who had allegedly infiltrated from neighboring Afghanistan into Pakistan’s northwestern border regions.
Pakistani forces were able to effectively dismantle the TTP and kill most of its top leadership in a string of military operations from 2014 onwards in the tribal areas, driving most of the fighters into neighboring Afghanistan, where Islamabad says they have regrouped. Kabul denies this.
Last month, the federal government announced it would launch a new counter-terrorism operation, Azm-e-Istehkam, but the campaign has so far been opposed by opposition parties.
Pakistan says 38 defense personnel missing since 1965 believed to be in Indian custody
- Pakistan, India exchange list of prisoners through diplomatic channels on Jan 1 and July 1 each year
- Repatriation of 62 Pakistani prisoners in 2023, four this year secured so far, foreign office says
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and India on Monday exchanged lists of prisoners in each other’s jails, the foreign office said, with Islamabad saying 38 defense personnel missing since the wars of 1965 and 1971 were believed to be in New Delhi’s custody.
Pakistan and India exchange such lists through diplomatic channels on Jan 1 and July 1 each year in pursuance of the Consular Access Agreement of 2008.
“Pakistan handed over a list of 254 Indian or believed-to-be-Indian civilian prisoners and fishermen in Pakistani jails. India shared a list of 452 Pakistani or believed-to-be-Pakistani civilian prisoners and fishermen in Indian jails,” the foreign office said.
“A list of 38 missing Pakistani defense personnel, believed to be in India’s custody since the wars of 1965 and 1971, was also handed over by Pakistan.”
The government has called for the immediate release and repatriation of all Pakistani prisoners who had completed their sentences in India.
“A request for special consular access to various believed-to-be-Pakistani prisoners, including the physically- and mentally challenged prisoners, has been made and for expeditious confirmation of their national status,” the foreign office said.
“The government of Pakistan has also urged India to ensure safety, security, and well-being of all Pakistani or believed-to-be-Pakistani prisoners, awaiting their release and repatriation.”
The repatriation of 62 Pakistani prisoners in 2023, and four in the current year, has also so far been secured, the foreign office added.
The Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, also known as the second India–Pakistan war, was an armed conflict between Pakistan and India that took place from August 1965 to September 1965. Hostilities ended after a ceasefire was declared through UNSC Resolution 211 following diplomatic intervention by the Soviet Union and the United States, and the subsequent issuance of the Tashkent Declaration.
The war of 1971, also known as the third India-Pakistan war, was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that ended with the fall of Dhaka and the creation of Bangladesh.
Pakistani religious party to hold Islamabad sit-in on July 12 against taxes, electricity prices
- Pakistan’s tax-heavy $67.76 billion budget for the new fiscal year came into effect Monday
- Last five months have seen steep increases in electricity and gas bills of consumers, industry
ISLAMABAD: The chief of Pakistani religious-political party, the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), said on Monday it would hold a sit-in in Islamabad on July 12 to exert pressure on the federal government to lower taxes and reduce electricity bills.
Pakistan’s tax-heavy $67.76 billion budget for the new fiscal year came into effect today, Monday, amid an annual inflation projection of up to 13.5 percent for June.
The ambitious budget with a challenging tax revenue target of Rs13 trillion ($46.66 billion) has drawn the ire of the government’s allies and opposition alike. The revenue collection target for the new fiscal year is almost 40 percent higher than the last fiscal year. The last five months have also seen steep increases in electricity and gas bills of consumers and industries.
“Today, a joint meeting of party representatives from all over the country was conducted and we decided to hold a large dharna in Islamabad on July 12,” the JI party chief Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman said on Monday at a press conference in the southern port city of Karachi, the country’s commercial hub. “The sit-in will be held to lower taxes and also the per unit value of electricity.”
Lamenting the increase in the new budget on the tax liability of the salaried class, Rehman said many working professionals, including doctors, engineers and chartered accountants, were leaving Pakistan due to the unfair policies.
“Everybody is trying to get out of Pakistan due to inflation, unemployment and increased taxes,” the JI chief said.
The rise in the Pakistan government’s tax target is made up of a 48 percent increase in direct taxes and a 35 percent hike in indirect taxes over revised estimates of the current year. Non-tax revenue, including petroleum levies, is seen increasing by 64 percent. The tax would increase to 18 percent on textile and leather products as well as mobile phones besides a hike in the tax on capital gains from real estate. Workers will also get hit with more direct tax on income.
Opposition parties, mainly parliamentarians backed by the jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, and major trade bodies have rejected the budget, saying it will be highly inflationary and lead to industry shutdowns.
