Child dies in Peshawar after being bitten by a rat

Uzair, a child of a family living in Hassan Garhi locality of Peshawar was bitten by a rat, and died of a deadly infection after the incident, relatives said.

He was provided medical treatment but could not survive the infection caused by the rodent bite, they said.

The population in the northwestern city of Pakistan faces a growing number of rodent population causing threat to human health by contaminating food, biting people apart of damage to the fabric of houses and shops.

In Hassan Garhi, five people reportedly injured in the rat bite incidents aprt of the death of young Uzair.

According to reports in last three years five persons have lost their lives by the infections caused by the rat bite.

Man hired to kill rats

A government agency in Peshawar last year hired a man who claimed to have killed 100,000 rats in a bid to rid Peshawar of the rodents that plague its streets.

Nasser Ahmad, who was assigned the “Rat Killer” job, receiving a monthly salary of 15,000 rupees ($147), as well as a 2,000-rupee bonus per mission.

Ahmad says he has already killed more than 100,000 rats in the past 19 months, inspired to take action after seeing the wife of a friend hospitalised after being bitten by one of the rodents.

The Water Supply and Sanitation Agency of Peshawar had offered the job to Ahmed after receiving complaints about the growing number of rodents in the city.

Ahmad was also ordered to train others in a bid to tackle Peshawar’s rat problem.