SILCHAR: Authorities of St Mary's School at Paikan in
Hailakandi district are under the scanner after the school reportedly sought a declaration from parents and guardians that it will not be responsible for any side effects of the measles rubella vaccine.
Principal of the school, Father Michael Toppo, had prepared an undertaking for parents and guardians to sign, saying that they had no objection to the vaccine being administered to their wards and that the school would not be held responsible in the event of any "side effect" of the vaccine. The vaccination drive will be held in the school on Thursday.
Deputy commissioner Adil Khan has asked inspector of schools Rajiv Kumar Jha to serve a show cause notice on school authorities. "Framing their own rules, in contravention of government and WHO guidelines, will scare parents away and put the lives of children at risk," the deputy commissioner said. Joint director of health (Hailakandi) Avijit Basu has asked additional chief medical and health officer Abed Rasul Mazumder and district immunization officer K Thambalsena to take up the matter with the school's nodal teacher.
There has always been a lot of concern about the measles rubella vaccine in Barak because of rumours about its side effects on social media. Earlier this month, 25 students of the Sahabad ME Madrasa under Katlicherra revenue circle had fallen ill after being administered the vaccine. The symptoms - fever, rashes and nausea - however, are side effects of the vaccine as listed by the World Health Organisation (WHO), under whose aegis the measles rubella vaccination campaign is undertaken globally.
Picture for representational purpose only.
