The dog bite cases have been on a rise in Quetta and other areas of Balochistan as according to the Doctors and administrators at government hospitals there is an acute shortage of anti-rabies vaccines.

Pakistan has been facing an immense shortage of anti-rabies vaccine (ARV) by some 800,000 dosages amid a growing population of stray dogs and almost non-existence of facilities in the rural parts of Balochistan and especially in Sindh.

“There is no denying that there is a shortage of anti-rabies vaccines in Balochistan as worldwide crisis regarding the availability of anti-rabies vaccine after the ones produced by China were not found meeting the safety concerns. “In the absence of Chinese vaccine, India became the only country to fill the gap. However, these days India is unable to meet their own demand so they have cut the ARV exports to other countries, including Pakistan.”

Meanwhile more than 19,000 cases have been reported from Civil Hospital, Quetta this year alone. The region, especially Quetta, has seen a rapid increase in these cases.

Management at the hospital said that an increase in these cases has led to a shortage of the Anti-Rabies Vaccines (ARV), not only in the city, but also other areas of the province.

The municipal department says it doesn’t have funds to run campaigns that educate people about preventive measures in case one suffers from a dog bite.

Most people are unaware that rabies is a contagious disease and needs to be treated urgently.

Locals have expressed concern over the need for campaigns to prevent dog bites. They also complained that walking alone after dusk has become difficult.

“If someone is bitten, they should wash the area with water and immediately go to a medical facility where ARV is available.

Dogs are the origin of about 99 percent of human rabies deaths. Rabies is a disease in Pakistan, although the prevalence of dog bites in the country is extremely high.

Rabies is an unavoidable disease which is passed to humans through the bite of contaminated animals.

The rabies virus penetrates the host by way of a bite contaminated with the saliva of one of its carriers. Rabies poses a menace to approximately three billion people worldwide. In Pakistan, most rabies cases are caused by dog bites.

The main cause of the rise in dog-bite cases is an unstoppable increase in the population of stray dogs in cities, towns and villages of the province. People are demanding of the government to ensure the availability of anti-rabies vaccines at hospitals and to take action to control the population of stray dogs in both urban and rural areas. If victims of dog bite are not administered anti-rabies vaccines in time, they develop hydrophobia which leads to a miserable death. Time and again the authorities have been reminded of the serious situation but so far there is not much evidence that the needful is being done.

It is desirable to control the population of stray dogs by neutering them. However, the delay in taking the required measures once again point to incompetence and corruption. The situation shows incompetence is valued in government circles.

“The Provincial government should take immediate measures to make Balochistan rabies-free and devise a comprehensive policy. It is so unfortunate that children are the major victims of stray dogs, both in urban and rural Balochistan. If we don’t move now it can become a much larger challenge in the days to come. It is time the authorities, from the municipal to the provincial level, took note.