Strict implementation of SOPs stressed
The Punjab government has assigned responsibilities to the administrative secretaries of the departments for monitoring the anti-dengue activities in all the towns of Lahore and directed them to send regular reports regarding the implementation. The directive was issued during a meeting chaired by Provincial Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique and Chief Secretary Punjab Kamran Ali Afzal at the Civil Secretariat on Friday. The meeting reviewed in detail the steps being taken to eradicate dengue in the province.
Provincial Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique directed that reporting of dengue cases from all public and private hospitals and laboratories should be ensured. He said that the system of monitoring, surveillance and reporting needs to be further improved. He mentioned that the quality of implementation of measures would be evaluated by a third party. He said that fogging should be done where necessary to eradicate mosquitoes. The Chief Secretary directed that all the departments should ensure implementation of the SOPs regarding dengue, adding that the performance related to implementation would be regularly reviewed. He said that the cooperation of the people is very important for the control of dengue. He appealed to the citizens to keep their homes and surroundings clean. The Chief Secretary also issued instructions to the deputy commissioners regarding culling of dengue larvae in hotspots. Health department officials briefed the meeting that so far 132 confirmed cases of dengue have been reported in the province. They said that six districts have been declared as high risk including Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan, Sheikhupura and Gujranwala.
The administrative secretaries of Health, Education, Irrigation, Informa-tion and related departments attended the meeting while all the divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners participated through video link.
