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Doctors, drugs sent to disease-hit Neelam Valley

From a correspondent

Muzaffarabad: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Health Department on Thursday sent a team of doctors and medicines to the upper areas of Neelum Valley where 60 children were died of measles and pneumonia to overcome the diseases and find the facts about reported death toll.

Senior minister Sahibzada Mohammed Ishaq Zaffar, who took serious notice of reported death of 60 children by pneumonia and measles, visited the Directorate of Health. Health Director General Ch. Mohammed Akram told a group of newsmen that has sent a special team of doctors along with huge quantity of medicines including vaccine to the diseases-hit upper parts of remote Neelum valley where the District Health chief has already been in the area.

During the sudden visit of the Health Directorate the Senior Minister summoned the report of death of 60 children by pneumonia and measles in the remotest parts of the valley and inquired about the presence of doctors in the affected areas.

Later, while talking to the newsmen here at Central Press Club, the senior minister said that the government was vigil about the situation in the Indian shelling-hit Neelum valley and claimed that all the doctors of the Health Department were present on their duties in the all parts of Neelum valley.

He said that 60 death of children might be occurred as parents could have brought their affected children to the doctors and hospital following heavy Indian artillery shelling and several feet snow fall in the upper areas of the remote valley.

He said he has directed the officials concerned for the furnishing of report of actual death toll.

The senior minister, however, said that deaths were occurred in last two months but not in last two days. Following communication cut off with the upper part of the valley, deaths could not be reported to the high officials of the Health Department last month, he added while quoting Health Department officials as saying.