( 2 )
TABLE No 2.
Showing increase and decrease of vaccination work in each district during the two years,
1887-88 and 1888-89.
District.
Cachar ...............................
Sylhet ..................................
Goálpára ...............................
Kámrúp ...............................
Darrang ...............................
Nowgong ............................
Sibságar ..................................
Lakhimpur ...............................
Nága Hills ...............................
Kási „ ...............................
Gáro „ ...............................
Manipur ..................................
Tea-gardens by garden agency .....
Total ..................
Total number vaccinated.
1887-88.
11,271
26,959
12,145
15,879
14,201
10,870
15,709
9,124
1,308
3,797
5,277
763
5,046
132,349
1888-89.
10,658
30,659
15,344
15,868
13,172
9,526
15,959
7,854
88
3,065
5,894
272
5,779
134,138
Difference.
Increase.
.........
3,700
3,199
.........
.........
.........
250
.........
.........
.........
617
.........
733
8,499
Decrease.
613
.........
.........
11
1,029
1,344
.........
1,270
1,220
732
.........
491
.........
6,710
Actual
increase.
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
1,789
Increase and decrease of vaccination work
in each district during the year.
4. The preceding table shows the increase and decrease of vaccination work done in
each district and on tea-gardens during the year as compared
with that of the previous year. The total work has risen
from 132,349 in 1887-88 to 134,138 in 1888-89, showing an increase for the Province of
1,789 over the figures of the previous year. The work done has increased in Goálpára by
3,199, Sylhet 3,700, Gáro Hills 617, Sibságar 250, and on tea-gardens by 733, while there
was a remarkable falling off in this work in the Nowgong. Lakhimpur, Nága Hills,
Darrang, Khási and Jaintia Hills, and Cachar districts by 1,344, 1,270, 1,220, 1,029, 732,
and 613 respectively. In the Nowgong district the decrease was chiefly due to the
resistance made by the people in many parts of the district, 141 villages having refused
vaccination, and also by sickness among the vaccinators causing a temporary loss of lymph
and cessation of work. The decrease in the Lakhimpur district has been chiefly due to the
want of energy in this direction on the part of the late Civil Surgeon in the earlier part
of the season and afterwards to his illness from the accident from which he suffered,
followed by, on his having been sent on sick leave, the want of a regular Civil Surgeon for
some time (the Military Surgeon only acting), and then to the short period of the season
remaining when the present Civil Surgeon had arrived. I hope that the next season will
show better results. As regards the Darrang district, 15 tubes from the same supply of
English lymph, which has been found so successful elsewhere in the Province, were sent
to the Civil Surgeon of Darrang on 21st September, which is quite the correct time to
provide for vaccination being actually commenced and to prevent its being spoiled by
damp if the package containing the tubes were opened earlier. Still, it appears from the
report of the Civil Surgeon, that the work was not started until 1st November, as there
was not sufficient lymph ready to supply all the vaccinators with a store for each. A
similar quantity to begin work with answered in other districts, and I don't understand
why it should have failed in this one. However, as this Civil-Surgeon is one of our best
officers, I conclude that there was some satisfactory explanation, and I have now asked
the Surgeon-General with Government of India to have a larger supply sent to me
by 15th September at the very latest date. We could not afford more than 15 tubes out
of the 200 tubes received from England, as some larger districts had to be supplied with
20 to 25 each. The Civil Surgeon of Darrang states, also, that throughout the district
generally, but more specially in the sadr division, the attitude of the people was decidedly
hostile to vaccination, so much so that in many villages where thousands of children
are unprotected the -people absolutely refused vaccination, and threatened the vaccinators,
although they were armed with parwanas from the Deputy-Commissioner. The decrease
is also attributable, in the Darrang district, although in a minor degree, to the change
of Civil Surgeons, which happened during the vaccination season, and to the interruption
of the inspection work consequent on such change. I have inquired into the causes
of the decrease in the Nága and Khási and Jaintia Hills, and I have issued such instruc-
tions as will, in both districts, insure an increase of successful work in this direction
in future. In the Nága Hills the cause of the decrease is attributed to the sickness
of the (only) vaccinator employed, who was incapacitated for work for half the season, i.e.,