2
districts being non-co-operation propaganda. The decrease in the Naga Hills is
attributed to the absence of small-pox and in Manipur to the extensive operations
carried out in previous years. The number of operations done in the Sadiya Fron-
tier Tract should have been higher in view of the fact that a whole-time Sub-
Inspector has been provided, and the improvement of vaccination in this district
should receive the attention of the Civil Surgeon.
9. Composition and strength of the inspecting staff.—The inspecting staff re-
mained the same as in the previous year.
10. Verification by the inspecting staff.—During the year, district Civil Sur-
geons and their Assistant Surgeons inspected 3.29 per cent. of the primary and 2 68
per cent. of re-vaccinations performed, as compared with 5.46 and 6.10 respectively
in 1920-21. The number of inspections by Civil Surgeons is small, but the
circumstances of the year were not such as to facilitate such inspections. The
subordinate inspecting staff inspected 52.83 per cent. of the primary and 56.18 of the
re-vaccinations against 46.21 and 44.48 respectively in 1920-21. The percentage of
inspection in the Sadiya Frontier Tract by the Sub-Inspector of Vaccination
though high, does not appear to be effective or reliable, and requires attention. The
inspections in the Garo Hills and Goalpara continued to be low and the attention
of the Civil Surgeons will be drawn to this with a view to improvement.
11. Vaccination in compulsory areas.—During the year, 1,485 children under one
year of age out of an available 3,502 or 42.40 per cent. were successfully vaccinated,
as compared with 50.73 per cent. in 1920-21. Satisfactory results were returned from
Silchar, Tezpur, and Nowgong, where over 90 per cent. of the children under one
year were vaccinated. In Sylhet, Sunamganj, and Barpeta only some 15 per
cent. of those under one year of age were vaccinated, but it should be remembered
that these figures are no measure of the actual vaccinations done, but rather
of the reluctance of parents to vaccinate children under one year of age. Few,
if any, of these children escape vaccination after the completion of the first
year of life except perhaps in the smallar towns such as Mangaldai and Golaghat,
where the administration of the compulsory Act is lax. The Vaccination Act was
in force in certain Village Authorities constituted under the Assam Local Self¬
Government Act in the Sylhet district, and a total of 5,285 operations were per-
formed in the village areas of Baniachong, Pagla, and Beani Bazar.
12. Vaccine depôt.—The total number of capillary tubes loaded during the
year was 583,433, as compared with 641,678 in 1920-21, showing a decrease of
58,245.
The number of tubes issued during the year was 566,909, against which
367,548 operations have been reported. The number of calves inoculated during
the year was 610 and lymph was taken from 501 calves, the remaining 109 being
rejected—28 for failure of operation, 18 for illness and 63 for ulceration and unsatis-
factory vesicles, against 96 in the previous year. The Superintendent, Vaccine
Depôt, refers to the difficulty in obtaining good calves, which is increasing every
year.
The total cost of working of the depôt amounted to Rs. 14,439 in 1921-22,
as compared with Rs. 12,474-4-6 in the previous year, the increase of Rs. 1,964-11-6
being due to the increased cost of the calves and of the capillary tubes.
13. Cost of the department.—The total cost of the department was Rs. 88,795-
15.0 in 1921-22, as compared with Rs. 78,973-15-2 in 1920-21, showing an
increase of Rs. 9,821-15-10 mainly under the head of pay of vaccinators, whose pay
had to be raised owing to a rise in prices. The average cost of each successful case
of vaccination was 4 annas as compared with 3 annas 8 pies in the previous year.
It is unsatisfactory to have to report less work and increased expenditure, but the
political causes of the former, and the economic causes of the latter, are not
chargeable to departmental account.
14. General.—A total of 16,970 operations, of which 15,506 were primary and
1,464 were re-vaccinations, were performed by tea garden medical officers during the
year, as compared with 12,346 with 11,222 primary and 1,124 re-vaccinations in the
previous year. Their percentages of success were 97.23 and 77.50, respectively.
Five thousand three hundred and seven operations were reported to have been per-
formed by medical officers attached to jails, lunatic asylum, police and coolie
depôt hospitals and 84 by railway Medical officers in 1921-22, against 4,687 and
272, respectively in 1920-21.
T. C. Mc. COMBIE YOUNG. Lieut. Colonel I.M.S.,
Director of Public Health, Assam.