Resolution on Vaccination Report for 1884-85.
Extract from the Proceedings of the Chief Commissioner of Assam in the General
Department No. 5,874A., dated Shillong, the 12th October 1885.
READ —
Vaccination Report for 1884-85.
RESOLUTION.
Preliminary.
THE Annual Report on Vaccination in Assam for 1884-85, which is dated the 4th
July, was due on the 1st July, and reached the Chief Com-
missioner in print on the 21st August 1885. Dr. Eteson
was in charge of the department throughout the year.
General results.
2. The results are satisfactory, showing a general advance and improvement. The
main features are a large increase of local board vaccinators,
and of the work done by them; a similar increase in the case
of municipal vaccinators ; and a decided improvement in the extent and efficiency of
inspection. The Government staff performed 95,282 operations, against 78,357 in
1883-84, and, in addition to these, there were 8,449 vaccinations reported as having
been done by private agency on tea-gardens, thus bringing the total recorded operations
of the year to 103,731. Of the total successful primary vaccinations, 12,682 were performed
on infants under one year of age, and 52,175 upon those aged under six years.
The Government staff of all grades during 1884-85 was 169, as compared with 170
in the previous year. But there has really been a large increase in the efficient staff, for
while ex-inoculators (a comparatively useless class) have been reduced from 51 to 27,
local board vaccinators have increased from 20 to 40 : and it is to the exertions of these
latter that the favourable results of the year are mainly due ; they contributed 26,486
cases to the total, against 15,319 last year.
The following table shows the total number of vaccinations, whether primary or
secondary, in each district during the past four years:—
Sylhet ....................
Cachar .....................
Goálpára ..................
Kámrúp ....................
Darrang ...................
Nowgong .............
Sibságar .....................
Lakhimpur .......................
Khási Hills .......................
Gáro „ ............................
Nága „ .........................
Tea-gardens by garden agency
Total ................
1881-82.
1,948
3,302
5,890
11,966
2,869
1,608
5,391
2,113
1,873
3,169
180
4,937
45,246
1882-83.
16,199
4,692
6,940
5,687
8,716
2,548
3,155
3,087
1,045
2,432
363
2,243
57,839
1883-84.
23,241
5,073
14,477
8,788
5,194
2,983
3,606
5,398
1,861
7,263
473
10,336
88,693
1884-85.
18,896
4,757
16,691
9,872
9,012
10,879
4,971
6,629
3,659
8,688
1,228
8,449
103,731
Decrease in the Surma Valley.
3. The statistics show an increase everywhere except in the Surma Valley the
falling off in Sylhet, 4,345 cases, or 18.6 per cent., being spe-
cially marked. The work done by tea-garden agency also
shows a decrease of 1,887 operations, but great difficulties have been experienced in ob-
taining reports from the garden managers, and the returns are admitted to be imperfect.
Nowgong, Darrang, and Goálpára are the districts which show the greatest progress, the
number of operations in Nowgong alone being 10,879, as compared with 2,983 in
1883-84.
Primary vaccinations.
4. Of the total 103,731 operations (including those performed by tea-garden agency)
103,148 were primary cases, and of these 92,400, or 89.58 per
cent., against 86.66 per cent. in 1883-84, were returned as
successful. Dividing these operations, in the same way as last year, into those performed
by Government agency, and those done by the medical officers of tea-gardens, a marked
difference is again observable. The 95,282 Government operations are reported to have
a success-percentage of 91.2 (91.36 in 1883-84), while the operations by garden agency