Extract from the Proceedings of the Resident at Hyderabad, No. 2279, dated
Hyderabad Residency, the 12th July 1893.
READ—
Report on vaccination in the Hyderabad Assigned Districts during the year 1892-93.
ORDER.
The report is not up to time. It was due in the Resident's office on the
15th May, but was received on the 16th idem, and the Commissioner's review
reached this office only on the 27th June. The cause of this delay is explained
in the first paragraph of the Commissioner's review.
2. Supply of lymph.—Vaccination in Berar for 1892-93 was commenced by
the manufacture and distribution of lanoline paste to the various centres in the pro-
vince. From it calves were vaccinated, and nothing but calf lymph from this source
has been used since. The results obtained show that the lymph is excellent, but
it is not stated whether the lanoline paste was made from vaccine lymph or from
the lymph of the small-pox vesicle; nor has any comparison been attempted
between the results obtained with the new calf lymph and that previously in use.
3. Particulars of work done.—The year's experience fully justifies the
change whereby Hospital Assistants have been relieved of the duty of perform-
ing vaccinations. The work of the department is now entirely in the hands of
trained vaccinators and it has been efficiently done. The progress made is shown
by the increase of 3,371 in the number of primary operations and of 13,655 in
the number of re-vaccinations. A portion of the increase in 1892-93 is un-
doubtedly due to the introduction of vaccination for the first time into the
Melghat; but excluding the Melghat there was an actual increase of 549
primary vaccinations and of no less than 12,223 re-vaccinations in the pro-
vince during the year. The officers of the department are entitled to a large
share of the credit for this considerable increase, but the Resident hopes that
some portion of it may also be ascribed to the removal of prejudices by the
spread of education.
4. Percentage of success.—The percentage of success is lower as regards
both primary and re-vaccinations than in the two preceding years, a result which
the Sanitary Commissioner attributes to the lateness of the autumn rains and
to the exceptionally heavy rain in January and March. It is questionable how
far the Sanitary Commissioner is right in this conclusion, for which he furnishes no
data. Extreme heat is known to cause deterioration of vaccine lymph, while
rain no less certainly lowers the temperature of the air. The cause therefore
to which the Sanitary Commissioner assigns the slightly diminished success of
the vaccine operations ought to have had a precisely opposite effect.
The Sanitary Commissioner explains the decrease in the number of pri-
mary vaccinations in the districts of Amraoti and Buldana by the illness of
the Superintendent, which incapacitated him from the performance of his
duties. The explanation, however, is at variance with the fact that the number
of re-vaccinations in these districts was remarkably high. In Amraoti there
was an increase of 5,127 and in Buldana of 2,562 over the figures of the previ-
ous year. Moreover, nothing is said about the health of the vaccinators, which
would have been more to the point.
5. Percentage of vaccination according to caste.—The statement that Hin-
dus accept vaccination more readily than Mahomedans, is scarcely justified by
the statistics, and is also contrary to experience at Hyderabad and elsewhere.
Mahomedans have no religious prejudices to overcome in the matter of vaccina-
tion, whereas Hindus believe that epidemics of small-pox have a divine origin.
They therefore oppose preventive measures and apply themselves to acts of
atonement. The slight difference in the protective rate may be due to the more
rigid gosha customs of the Mahomedans, and the race or caste of the vaccinator
may have something to do with it. For example, a Hindu vaccinator will natur¬
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