Himalayan News Service

Biratnagar, March 16:

A special anti-Kala-azar campaign supported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) is going to be launched in 12 districts of central and eastern Terai in May.

According to a survey, Jhapa, Morang, Sunsari, Saptari, Siraha, Udayapur, Dhanusha, Mahottari, Sarlahi, Rautahat, Bara and Parsha are some of the districts that are most affected by the epidemic, while Sitamadi, Madhuwani, Supaul, Purnea, Arariya and Kishangunj districts of India located on Indo-Nepal border, and some parts of Bangladesh near the border are also vulnerable to the disease.

The WHO campaign will focus on three countries namely Nepal, India and Bangladesh, Dr Garib Das Thakur, chief of Kala-azar Disease Control Unit (KDCU). The target is a joint control of the epidemic in the three nations.

The three countries have started to cooperate for the effective control of the epidemic, said Dr Thakur. In this connection, the countries’ health ministers will sign an agreement at the WHO office, Geneva, in May. Compared to others, a large number of Musahars are found to be suffering more from it, said Rita Joshi, senior public health officer at KDCU.

Once the WHO-backed programme starts, special programmes targeting the grassroots will be launched, she said.

Under the campaign, volunteers and health workers will be involved in a door-to-door drive looking for Kala-azar patients, who will be advised to take miltophosi medicine for around 28 days, but no injection will be prescribed.

Apart from this, awareness programmes will be organised in all affected areas.

Earlier, 125 persons suffering from Kala-azar were treated at the BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences by implementing the RK 39 technology.

According to figures, of the 5.5 million people suffering from Kala-azar, 88 per cent are said to be from the backward and janjati communities.