Two more infants die in Thar's Mithi Civil Hospital

THARPARKAR: Two more infants died at Civil hospital Mithi, in Sindh’s drought-hit district of Tharparkar on Friday,  due to the health problems caused by chronic malnutrition prevailing in the region for a long time,  said the sources within the hospital.

Thar’s situation fails to improve despite relief measures by the provincial government of Sindh to address food shortage in the desert region.

With the death of two more toddlers in Tharparkar, the number of total fatalities this year has reached to 560 so far.

The chairman and the co-chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which is ruling the province, had taken the notice of the deteriorated situation of Thar and directed to disburse grocery bags and to send fodder for the animals in the region, but the problem continues to remain as disturbing as it was before.

Last month, the Supreme Court had summoned the Sindh chief secretary and other top officials in a case pertaining to the deaths of children owing to malnutrition in Tharparkar.

The chief justice remarked that he would himself visit Tharparkar to monitor the situation in the drought-hit desert region.

MNA Ramesh Kumar Vankwani during the hearing told the judges that there is a need to establish basic health centers at the level of villages in Tharparkar. Thar is the place where one could find every kind of herbs for medicines available the world over, he claimed.

He said the health department alone couldn’t address the situation as the participation of other departments would be necessary for relief efforts in the region.