By Aamir Yasin

Copyright dawn

RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi District Health Authority has dismissed 12 workers and supervisors for alleged negligence during the anti-dengue campaign.

District Health Authority Chief Executive Officer Dr Ehsan Ghani told Dawn that show-cause notices had been issued to more than 448 workers, and in the initial phase, action was taken against 12 workers under departmental rules.

He said the employees were dismissed under the PEDA Act 2006 for failing to meet the targets in the dengue campaign and for continued inefficiency.

An inquiry is also underway against other sanitary staff accused of negligence in the dengue campaign. He said the District Health Authority has formed a three-member inquiry committee headed by the district health officer.

The dismissed employees, he said, had been negligent and mostly failed to perform the work assigned to stop the spread of the dengue virus. Targets were assigned to all employees, but some remained inefficient despite repeated warnings.

He said the anti-dengue drive is continuing in the district, and teams have been deployed to fumigate sensitive union councils. All staff have been instructed to speed up the door-to-door surveillance campaign.

He urged citizens to cooperate with health authority teams so that the number of dengue patients could be reduced in the coming days. He said it was the peak season for the dengue virus, and efforts were being made to stop its spread to other areas.

At present, he said, 20 new dengue patients had been reported, bringing the total number of patients in the district to 394, which is fewer than in the past two years.

He expressed hope that the number of patients would decline in the coming days.

On the fourth day of the HPV vaccination campaign, Dr Ehsan Ghani said that 78 per cent of the target had been achieved on Thursday.

The campaign will continue until September 27 to immunise girls aged 9 to 14 against cervical cancer.

He said this initiative is part of a nationwide effort to protect women from a serious health threat. The district-wide goal is to vaccinate 395,609 girls.

Speaking about challenges faced by the teams, he said that while parents were generally willing to vaccinate their daughters in local communities, difficulties arose in schools where parental consent was required.

He said the Rawalpindi Health Authority is urging all parents to support the HPV vaccination campaign for girls aged 9 to 14. “This vaccine is our best defense against cervical cancer, a disease that affects countless women,” he added.

He said the teams are working actively in schools and communities, but many girls remain unvaccinated, largely due to refusals based on misinformation.

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2025