Earthquakes shake Indonesia, Philippines; no tsunami threat
Jakarta(AP): Strong, shallow underwater earthquakes shook western Indonesia and the Philippine capital region on Monday, but no serious damage was reported and no tsunami warnings were issued.
In Indonesia, a magnitude-6.7 quake that was 16 kilometers (10 miles) deep struck about 169 kilometers (104.8 miles) west of Pariaman, a town in West Sumatra province, the US Geological Survey said.
The Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the quake was felt in many parts of the province but there was no danger of a tsunami.
It occurred just before dawn and was centered about 161 kilometers (100 miles) southeast of South Nias, a district in North Sumatra province.
Another earthquake of 6.4-magnitude shook parts of the Manila region and outlying provinces at dawn but there were no reported damages or injuries, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said.
The offshore quake was set off by movement along the Manila Trench and its epicenter was about 110 kilometers (68 miles) west of Lubang island in Occidental Mindoro province, which lies south of Manila, the Philippine institute said. Its depth was about 28 kilometers (17 miles).
Indonesia and the Philippines lie along the Pacific Ring of Fire the seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean where most of the world's earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.
A 6.2 earthquake in Indonesia's West Sumatra province last month killed at least 16 people and injured more than 400. Thousands of homes and other buildings were damaged by the tremors that were felt as far away as Malaysia and Singapore. (AP)
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
