Sir: This refers to the rumours spread in KP regarding the adverse effects of polio vaccines, which resulted in thousands of worried and panic stricken parents rushing to the schools and taking their kids to hospitals.
The rumours spread like a wild fire, the intensity of the rumor was such that it even created law and order situation which was difficult to control. It was a well-planed conspiracy claiming that children allegedly suffered reactions even deaths because of polio vaccines.
Almost same type of romour was spread one day that the children were being vaccinated in the schools in the name of anti-smallpox and typhoid vaccines, to make them impotent. Thousands of panic-stricken parents rushed to schools to take their children and refused to get them vaccinated against those two dieses which were very common in those days and government had arranged special vaccination teams to visit schools as a precautionary step against the spread of those deadly dieses.
How unfortunate is this in our country that whenever the government of the day initiate any welfare scheme or the bright future of the coming generations , conspiracies are hatched to create hurdles in healthy trouble free future life our next generations. Culprits who spread rumours, must be trialed in court.
AAMIR AQIL
Lahore