Rise in cancer cases has set alarm bells ringing in Himachal Pradesh prompting the state government to take stricter preventive and treatment measures.
Raising the issued prominently in the Assembly on Friday, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu informed the House that after the North-East, Himachal ranks second in the country in terms of reported cancer cases. He said the government was taking the matter seriously and working on improvements. PET scan facilities are being introduced in state medical colleges, starting this year with Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) Shimla and Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College,Tanda in Kangra district followed by other colleges in a phased manner.
The chief minister further said that a committee of oncology experts has been constituted and steps are being taken based on its recommendations.
Chemotherapy services are being made available at the district level.
Dedicated centres have already been set up at the Zonal Hospital in Mandi and the Civil Hospital in Sarkaghat, while follow-up and chemotherapy facilities are operational in Dharamshala, Palampur, Nurpur, Jai Singhpur, and Baijnath. Similar services will soon begin in Rampur and Rohru, said Sukhu.
Raising concern, Congress MLA Kuldeep Rathore called the rising number of cancer patients in the state alarming. He pointed out that indiscriminate use of pesticides in agriculture is a major cause and that non-branded pesticides are being sold freely without regulation. He urged the government to take strict action to curb this practice.
The chief minister assured the House that action would be taken, adding that the government has already been promoting natural farming to reduce the use of pesticides and urea.
In this context, he said necessary directions would be issued to the Horticulture Minister.
Congress MLA Rakesh Kalia also demanded a chemotherapy centre in his constituency Gagret in Una district and highlighted the case of a young man named Harman, suffering from a bone marrow disease, whose treatment would cost around Rs 20 lakh. The chief minister assured that financial support would be provided as per existing rules.