- May 27, 2024
- Kainat Shakeel
- 0
TAXILA: A livestock emergency was declared by the Attock district administration following the deaths of two victims of Congo Crimean Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF). The district implemented Section 144, which forbade the conduct of cattle markets and restricted the movement of animals between districts ten days before Eidul Azha. Deputy Commissioner Rao Atif Raza presided over a meeting of the technical advisory group that included representatives from the local government, the health department, and the livestock department, among other stakeholders.
The decision was made to outlaw the holding of cattle markets in Gali Jageer in Fatehjang and Gondal in Attock, Domel, and Jand. Additionally, a total prohibition on the transportation of cattle between districts and provinces would be guaranteed. Afterward, Deputy Commissioner Rao Atif Raza and Assistant Commissioner Hassanabdal unexpectedly visited the livestock department checkpost at Jehri Kass on Hazara Road, which is located on the border between Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to observe any potential cattle movements from KP into Punjab. In the meantime, to assess the measures made by the Attock administration, Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Engineer Aamir Khattak also made an unexpected visit to the livestock checkpost in Attock Khurd on G.T. Road.
The most recent wave of the illness was discovered on May 1, according to Dr. Asad Ismail, Chief Executive of the District Health Authority, when a 51-year-old patient from Hazro called Muhammad Imran was admitted to a hospital in Rawalpindi due to a high fever and oral hemorrhage. A hospital later claimed his life. Khair Khanum, a 50-year-old patient from Jand who arrived on May 17 and unfortunately passed away, was the second patient. Later on, the National Institute of Health (NIH) verified that the Congo virus was afflicting both patients. In response to a query, Dr. Ismail stated that the Congo virus was fatal and that there was only a 10% chance of recovery. He claimed that humans and animals might spread the virus to one another. In addition to a high fever, symptoms include bleeding from the nose, gums, and stools.
Dr. Abdul Hameed, Additional Director of the Attock Livestock Department, stated that to enforce the district’s livestock movement ban, the department had set up checkpoints at all points of entry and departure. As a result of the anticipated large-scale cattle movement ahead of Eidul Azha, the Punjab government has sent a nine-member committee made up of specialists from the livestock and health departments to investigate the causes and review the cases of those impacted to develop a final plan to reduce the deadly disease’s spread in the Attock district.