7
courage inborn in him as one belonging
to a Pathan race to face the occasionally
murderous assaults to which a Sub-In-
spector of Vaccination had recently suc-
cumbed in one of the districts of East-
ern Bengal. On my first inspection of
Bakarganj district where I spent full
five winter months I found that vaccina-
tion of infants was unknown and only
about 5 per cent. of the entire popula-
tion was vaccinated. The vaccination
reports submitted by the Inspectors and
Sub-Inspectors were entirely faked and
untrustworthy. The Special Inspector
was thereupon, on my recommendation,
deputed with a staff of 20 vaccinators to
that district and house-to-house vacci-
nation started. Within a period of 6
years the entire district as far as practi-
cable was visited by the Special Inspec-
tor and his staff. A total of 506,124
persons out of a population of 2,380,293
were vaccinated inspite of fierce opposi-
tion by the inhabitants. In 1922, how-
ever, Haji Jan Khan, the Special In-
spector, retired and the staff broken up.
The results of this special campaign
were striking as shown by the following
statement from which it will appear
that in Bakarganj district the small-pox
death-rate came down from .21 per
mille and .18 per mille in the
epidemics of 1908-09 and 1914-15
respectively
to
.02 per mille in
1924-25 epidemic, while in three of the
districts of that circle where the condi-
tions of opposition were the same, the
death-rate increased, especially in Chit-
tagong where the rise was 800.0 per
cent. Assuming these returns to be
fairly accurate, the results are encour-
aging enough to lead me to suggest the
appointment of one Special Inspector
of Vaccination for each division to help
the District Health Officers in prepar-
ing their respective districts to meet the
anticipated small-pox epidemic in 1930
which, according to Dr. Bentley's fore-
cast, is likely to be the severest epidemic
the world has experienced during the
last 60 years. It is only by pushing vac-
cination and re-vaccination to the ex-
treme during the intervals of the two
quinquennial periods, that there is any
chance of mitigating its severity if not
altogether stamping out the disease by
affording protection to as much of the
population as is possible under the cir-
cumstances. Further, I would suggest
that these Special Inspectors may be
selected for their experience in vaccina-
tion work from amongst men who have
spent most part of their lives in the ser-
vice of the Department, gaining valu-
able experience thereby, rather than
from raw recruits from the medical de-
partment who, however qualified they
may be, know nothing about the practi-
cal side of the vaccination work. It is
to be remembered in this connection
that in the campaign of 1914-20 the
local Government not only contributed
the pay of the Special Inspector but also
that of the vaccinators employed in the
staff. At the present moment, the last
item would have to be paid for by the
District Boards who appoint their own
paid vaccinators.
Statement showing the ratio of deaths from small-pox
per
mille of population
in districts of Dacca Circle during
the epidemic years in Bengal.
District.
Dacca ..
Mymensingh ..
Faridpur ..
Bakarganj ..
Chittagong ..
Noakhali ..
Tippera ..
Total for the Province
1924-25.
.17
.14
.03
.02
.27
.06
.02
.22
1920-21.
.82
.50
.47
.13
.10
.34
.47
.48
1919-20.
1.17
.52
. 77
.19
.10
.46
.100
.90
1914-15.
.16
.09
.05
.18
1.58
.29
.04
.45
1908 09.
.18
.10
.09
.21
.03
.05
03
..
Percentage of increse or
decrease in 1924-25 as
compared with 1908-09.
- 5.0
+40.0
- 66.7
- 90.5
+800.0
+20.0
- 33.3
..
Before closing this report, I would
like to thank the District Health Officers
for the active measures of precaution
which they promptly adopted against
the spread of the epidemic at the in-
stance of the Public Health Depart-
ment. The Public Health organisa-
tions which now exist in the districts
and the readiness so far shown by the
District Health Officers to adopt the in-
structions of the Public Health Depart-
ment in matters relating to sanitation
are an indication of a brighter day when
epidemics will be rare in Bengal. The
gradual fall of small-pox incidence since
the appointment of District Health
Officers and the introduction of free
vaccination in the various districts
tends to such optimism.
19. The prescribed statements are
appended.
M. E. SUFI, D.P.H.,
Assistant Director of Public Health
in charge of
Vaccination and Vital Statistics.
CALCUTTA :
The 22nd October, 1925.