Meghalaya faces shortage of anti-rabies vaccine

Shillong, May 19 (UNI) Non-availability of anti-rabies vaccine (ARV) at Pasture Institute and Medical Research (PIMR) in Meghalaya and even in neighbouring states has kicked up a row even as health authorities have constantly kept knocking the government's door to procure the life-saving vaccines.

The shortage of the ARV across the state was after the Pasteur Institute of India in Coonoor, the main supplier and manufacturing of Tissue Culture Anti Rabies Vaccine (TCARV), refused to supply the vaccines on credit.

"We don't have a single dose of ARV in our centre because of the apathy of the government to sanction a mere amount of Rs 6.32 lakhs to procure ARV from Pasteur Institute of India in Coonoor," Director Health Services (Research) Dr B K Patgiri said.

The government-owned PIMR, which administers the costly life-saving vaccine to dog-bitten patients on a highly subsidized basis only to disadvantaged section of people, ran out of stock since April 19 last.

''I don't understand why they have to wait till March 31 year-ending to release that money. This is a life studying drug and not some material item. They have to prioritise,'' Dr Patgiri told UNI here yesterday.

Dr Patgiri said that even without the ARV, the institute was administering immunoglobin serum, an anti rabies serum. But he said this is not a vaccine and only just an anti-body which would work for some time.

''I have tried to augment ARV supplies from the open market but that too proved unsuccessful as the local dealers told me that there was no stock after the vaccines manufactured by some foreign countries has not reached the country and it's not available even in Guwahati,'' he informed.

Pastuer Institute Shillong, which manufactured and supplied Nerve Tissue Anti Rabbies Vaccine (NTARV) to other north eastern states, stopped production in 2004 after the country decided to follow the World Health Organisation ban on NTARV.

Biangka Biam, mother of 12-year-old Ha-O-Chwa, bitten by a stray dog at Jowai area in Jaintia Hills district, came to PIMR to inquire about ARV and said, ''I hunted in more than 80 pharmacies in the state but was told that it was out of stock. I don't know what will happen to my son.'' ''We have gone down to Guwahati and even Kolkata to procure ARV, but we returned empty-handed since most ARV manufacturing companies such as 'Vaxirab' and 'Caddila' have stopped manufacturing these vaccines,'' a pharmacist said.

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