Four more jaundice cases detected

Among the 41 cases which were noticed at the first stage, 18 are of Hepatitis-B. Doctors in the local civil hospital maintain that once a person is hit by this type of jaundice, he becomes a permanent carrier."As all these carriers of Hepatitis-B are from the poor sections and consult quacks, the chances of further spread of this disease have increased,” says a senior doctor.

Significantly, as many as four quacks practicing in the Kotli Faridkot village are being held responsible for the spread of this disease, by the surveying teams of doctors in their preliminary reports. But as these quacks have temporarily closed shop, there seems to be no permanent solution to the problem."A court verdict is not enough. A strong political will is required to ban these quacks,"says a doctor.

Meanwhile, Chief Medical Officer Bawa Ram Gupta told ENS that he had written to the higher authorities to provide anti Hepatitis-B injections to the doctors treating patients in the affected village. District Health Officer H.S. Dhillon said anti Hepatitis-B injections had been given to 226 people of the village. The water samples of the entire Sangat block had also been send for testing, he added.