Combat diarrhoea jointly

A man brings his diarrhoea attacked child to the Nilphamari Sadar Hospital for treatment . The pictures were taken at noon yesterday. PHOTO: STAR

At the meeting which continued till late night Friday night, he called upon government officials to work on holidays and to stop all workshops and training programmes.

The meeting with Deputy Commissioner Abdul Bari in the chair and attended by among others Civil Surgeon and the police Superintendent discussed measures to contain the disease. Among others, district BNP Secretary Anisul Arefin Chowdhury, Awami League leader and Municipal Chairman Dewan Kamal Ahmed and Jammat-e-Islami Ameer

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Mozammel Haq were present at the meeting.

The Divisional Commissioner urged NGOs to postpone realisation of instalments of their loans from poor clients in view of the situation.

In the last 48 hours ending at noon yesterday, two more people were killed and 2000 attacked with the disease in the six upazilas in the district.

The dead are Ranjoli Rani Roy, 28, of Shalhati village in Nautara union under Dimla upazila and Aleya Begum, 38, of Pathan Para village in Kektibari union under Domer upazila.

At least 500 patients were treated in the six upazila health complexes and the Sadar Hospital. This correspondent saw patients were being treated on rickshaw vans and on open spaces outside the hospitals as even corridors were packed with patients.

With this, the death toll from the disease is 29 officially and 40 unofficially.

Md Robbani, an official in-charge of the district control room said yesterday that the special three-member team from IEDC, Dhaka, headed by Shafiqur Rahman, collected samples of stool from patients and sent those to Dhaka for culture.

Two more treatment camps have been opened in two villages. Five more diarrhoea wards were opened at five upazilas health complexes earlier.

Earlier, a medical team from Dhaka headed by Dr Nuruzzaman said that intake uneatable food, impure drinking water, coupled with malnutrition and poor sanitation were the main reasons for spread of diarrhoea.

Sources including political leaders talking to his correspondent said mere supply of saline and medicine is not enough to contain the disease. The government should immediately start supplying food in the affected areas, they said.