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ELEVENTH TRIENNIAL REPORT ON VACCINATION IN BENGAL
FOR THE YEARS 1917-18, 1918-19 and 1919-20.
1. I submit the following report on Vaccination in Bengal for the
triennial period from 1917-18 to 1919-20.
2. Officer-in-charge of the department.—I was in charge of the
department throughout the triennial period.
Dr. Brahmachari held charge of the office of the Deputy Sanitary
Commissioner of the Presidency Circle ; Drs. Sur and Ray of the Burdwan
Circle ; Dr. Sufi of the Dacca Circle ; and Drs. Gupta, Ray and Ghosh of the
Rajshahi Circle during the triennium
3. Strength of Staff.—The average number of inspecting officers and
vaccinators in Calcutta was 14 and 62 during the triennial period against 7
and 45 during the previous epoch. In the rural areas of the Presidency
they numbered 133 and 1,576, and in mufassal municipalities, dispensaries,
etc., 6 and 170 as compared with 126 and 1,347, and 5 and 155 during the
previous triennial period.
4. General operations.—Excluding about 7,538 operations performed
by the British India Steam Navigation Company, the Port Health Department,
Calcutta, and a sub-assistant surgeon in the Murshidabad district for
which no details are available, the total number of vaccinations reported to
have been performed in this Presidency during the year 1919-20 was
3,186,642 on. 3,181,727 persons against 1,784,817 on 1,773,715 persons during
the previous year, showing an increase of no less than 1,401,825 operations.
Of the total cases, 1,646,099 were primary and 1,540,543 re-vaccinations as
compared with 1,295,331 and 489,486 during 1918-19. There were thus
350,768 more primary vaccinations and 1,051,057 more re-vaccinations
performed in 1919-20 than during the previous season. The average of the
triennial period under review was 2,195,353 of which 1.432,923 were primary
operations and 762,430 re-vaccinations, the corresponding figures of the previous
triennial epoch being 1,624,214, 1,246,895 and 377,319. respectively. The
average increase in the triennium thus amounts to a total of 571.139 opera-
tions. The greatly increased amount of vaccination during the season under
review is to be attributed firstly t o the greater prevalence of small-pox and
secondly to the special efforts made to induce people to accept vaccination.
Early in the season warnings were issued by this department that an
epidemic was likely to occur and repeated requests were sent to civil
surgeons, chairmen of district boards and municipalities and others urging
them to push on vaccination as vigorously as possible. Special circulars and
illustrated leaflets and posters were also prepared and widely circulated, and
it is reported that these proved very effective in inducing people to accept
vaccination more readily than usual.
The average rate of success in primary and re-vaccination cases during
the triennial period was 96.75 and 67.95, respectively, against 96.71 and 64.29
during the previous epoch.
The average number of operations performed by a vaccinator was 1,187
against 1,045 during the previous triennial period. The average work of a
licensed and a paid vaccinator was 1,105 and 1,365 respectively, as com-
pared with 1,028 and 1,117 during the previous triennium.
As compared with the previous year (1918-19) there was an increase of
operations in every district except Darjeeling, but there was slight decrease
in primary vaccination in the Serampur subdivision of the Hooghly district
and in the districts of Malda and Chittagong Hill Tracts. The increase was
between 12,000 to 20,000 in four districts, over 20,000 to 30,000 in seven,
over 30,000 to 40,000 in three, over 40,000 to 50,000 in three, over 50,000 to
80,000 in five and over one lakh in four, viz., Dacca (106,156), Mymensingh
(118,677), Faridpur (171,760) and Calcutta (181,402). The decrease in
Darjeeling and the increase in the Chittagong Hill Tracts in total operations
were slight.
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