NOTE ON VACCINATION FOR THE YEAR 1912-13.
1. Vaccination is carried on under the local authorities by licensed and
paid vaccinators and their work is supervised by the Government staff of
Inspectors.
12,93,474 persons were vaccinated, which gives an average of 1,140 to each
vaccinator. Of these 25,405 were revaccinated. The percentage of successful
primary operations is reported to be 99.59 and of revaccinations 69.33.
The number of operations fell by 19,776 in comparison with the record
of 1911-12. The fall was most noticeable in Cuttack (18,212), Champran
(4,914) and Monghyr (4,191). In the two latter places it is attributed to
cholera and plague.
2. Statement VI shows the ratio of mortality from small-pox side by side
with the number of successful vaccinations during the last decade. It will be
noticed that between the year 1904-05 and 1908-09 the death rate steadily
rose from .19 to .83 per mille and that during the first three years of this
period the number of successful vaccinations was remarkably low. It will
also be noticed that since 1908-09, when the ratio of mortality reached its
height, it has steadily fallen year by year, in proportion as the number of
successful operations has increased. At the present time the ratio of mortality
(.06) is lower and the number of successful vaccinations is higher than it has
been at any time during last decade. This relationship between the figures
seems to be too regular to be merely a coincidence, and I think that very
probably the successful result is due to the efforts which the Deputy Sanitary
Commissioners and vaccination staff in Bengal have been making of recent
years to improve vaccination in rural areas. The number of successful
operations has, however, fallen during the year under report by over 18,000 ;
which shows that further efforts must be made if the high standard of efficiency
of rural vaccination is to be maintained.
Apart from the Native Tributary States, from which no vital occurrences
are reported, the mortality from small-pox in most of the districts of the
province is negligible and the only extensive area which reports a high death
rate includes parts of the districts of Purnea, Bhagalpur, Monghyr and the
Sonthal Parganas in the North-East part of the Province.
3. The attention which has been paid to vaccination in rural areas does
not seem to have been extended to Municipal areas. A reference to Statement
VII shows that the proportion of children successfully vaccinated was in many
cases very low compared with the number who were available for vaccination.
In the towns of Gaya, Bihar, Dinapur, Chapra, Darbhanga, Monghyr,
Jamalpur, Bhagalpur, Cuttack and Hazaribagh the records show that of a
total of 11,814 available children only 6,316 or a little over a half were
vaccinated. This condition is not at all satisfactory and unless special efforts
are made to get the children vaccinated serious outbreaks of small-pox will
occur in these towns sooner or later. If the provisions of the Bengal Vacci-
nation Act are properly carried out practically every child born within
Municipal limits if it lives, should have been vaccinated by the time it
reaches one year of age.
Lanolinated vaccine was supplied to all districts from the Calcutta Depôt
by an arrangement with the Sanitary Commissioner of Bengal. It was of
good quality and the work done with it is reported to have been very
satisfactory. The plans and estimates of a Vaccine Depôt for the Province of
Bihar and Orissa costing Rs. 1,44,000 have been sanctioned and the building
is to be put in hand immediately.
E. C. HARE, LIEUT.- COLONEL, I.M.S.,
Sanitary Commissioner, Bihar and Orissa.