Avtar Bhat
KATHUA, Feb 1: As the reports have surfaced that scores of children in Govindsar area near here have developed various deformities as a section of them have also fallen a prey to some chronic ailments and became handicapped for last some years, the district administration Kathua has constituted a four member committee headed by an IAS Officer as its chairperson to ascertain the cause of the same.
The CMO Kathua, District Officer Pollution Control Board and DFO Kathua are the other members of the committee. The team will hold detailed survey to ascertain the facts that led to the cause of the deformities which have been reported among the children of the area for last two decades.
The DC Kathua Ramesh Kumar has written a letter to all the concerned departments in this regard and sought their cooperation also so that the cause of the problem can be ascertained.
Meanwhile a team of six doctors was deputed by Director Health Services Jammu Dr B S Pathania to Govindsar to examine the children in the village today. The team of doctors who examined the children comprised of pediatrician, orthopaedic surgeon, general physician, Ophthalmologist and other doctors examined 26 children of different age groups.
The children examined included those who have become physically handicapped as well as who were suffering from various chronic ailments.
The doctors also recommended various tests to these children out of which some will be conducted in GMC Jammu.
Confirming this CMO Kathua, Dr Basant Kumar told Excelsior that he too had written a letter to heads of various departments including the Director Health Services seeking the deployment of the team of doctors to ascertain the cause of the problem.
The CMO said that the Department will conduct the house to house survey in the village, seek family history of past and present so that they can reach any conclusion about the surfacing of the problem in the area.
He said the Department will also try to find out that it is not a genetic problem or its cause has been some thing else so that there should not be a problem for the villagers in future too.
The CMO said besides conducting free of cost clinical examination and tests of these children they will also be provided free medicines by the Department.
It may be recalled that Excelsior had published a story in its January 12 edition that there are alarming reports about children born with deformities in Govindsar Kathua.
Some social organizations as well as local people are assigning the cause of deformities due to increasing number of industries including some toxic plants like cement factories etc which have been established in the area.
However so far the authorities have failed to ascertain the cause of the deformities among the children and to find out the cause the district administration in close coordination of the Health Department has started an exercise in this regard.
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