SWABI: The health department has sent its teams to mountainous villages of Gadoon Amazai belt for tackling the measles outbreak after reports that the disease has claimed life of a girl there.

According to reports reaching here, the measles-hit areas included Sokeelye, Sandwa and Talaye.

When contacted, people of these villages said that their children had been vaccinated regularly against various diseases, including measles, but despite that several of them had been affected by the disease.

`We don`t know about the treatment. The health officials should come and educate people on preventive measures,` said Salam Pur of Sandwa village.

Zahir Shah of the same village told this correspondent by phone that eight years old Maria had died due to measles on Wednesday.However, district head of EPI Dr Yaqub said that the girl had recovered from measles and she died due to extensive vomiting.

Answering a question, Mr Zahir said that some health officials visited the area, gave medicines to the children and advised people to adopt precautionary measures.

He said that there were about 70 measles-hit children only in Sandawa village and more teams of doctors should be sent to the area on emergency basis.

However, the EPI head brushed aside such assertions and said that health department teams had vaccinated 250 children and recorded that 23 of them were suffering from measles.

He said that people of the area were reluctant to bring out their children for vaccination and they were tight-lipped about the disease of their children. He also suggested that the health officials should set up camps there to provide treatment to the affected children and create awareness among people of preventive measures.

This correspondent repeatedly tried to contact district health officer Dr Ihsan Akbar, but his mobile phone number was off due to unknown reasons. Meanwhile, MPA Shiraz Khansaid that he would meet with the DHO and aske him to send more medical teams to the area to treat the children.

POLICE RAIDS ON EXAMS CENTRES: Teachers and their leaders have resented continued police raids on the exam centres where examinations of 9th and 10th classes of the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Mardan, are underway.

The matter was discussed at the joint meeting of All Teachers Association and Senior Staff Association, presided over by ATA district president Abdul Latif here on Friday. They said that police were not authorised to enter the hall and harass students.

`There is a perfect system of the board and all the required steps have been taken to discourage cheating. There is no need of police at all,` said a school principal requesting for anonymity.

Ijaz Khan, ATA vice-president, said that the BISE had deputed the invigilators while its monitoring teams had also been visiting the halls to check cheating.

He said that in addition there were special teams for the purpose. They appealed to the provincial education minister to stop police from raiding examination halls.