Dr Jose D'Sa is new nodal officer for swine flu
TNN
PANAJI: The government on Tuesday replaced Dr Rajendra Tamba as its nodal officer for swine flu following his comments on the lack of funds for
the project. He has been transferred to the rural medical dispensary at Chorao.

Dr Jose D'Sa, health officer with the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, has been appointed in his place. D'Sa took over the additional charge on Tuesday.

Tamba, who has also been stripped of the post of state epidermologist, earned the state government's ire after he released a media statement claiming that the state's swine flu monitoring programme was facing a financial crunch.

"The expenses so far were made from funds under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP) received from the government of India, which are now exhausted," Tamba had said.

Maintaining that there was no dearth of funds for the programme, health minister Vishwajit Rane said on Monday that such statements by the nodal officer could portray a wrong image of the state across the country. "It was not right to make such a statement. It was against the interest of the state," Rane said.

TOI had reported over a fortnight ago that Tamba had written to chief minister Digambar Kamat asking to be relieved from the post. He had reportedly alleged in the letter that the state health authorities were not cooperating with him and not doing enough for the quarantined patients.

Goa has so far recorded six confirmed cases of swine flu and has set up two facilities to isolate the suspected and confirmed patients.

August 05,2009, The Times of India, Goa edition