(1) The Superintendent of every hospital, Medical Officer in charge of every health centre, maternity centre or any other medical institution, or the medical authority of every nursing home—
(a) shall cause any child born therein to be vaccinated within three days from the date of birth or before the date of discharge whichever is earlier unless the Superintendent, Medical Officer or the medical authority is of opinion that the child is not in a fit state of health to be vaccinated;
(b) shall cause every patient admitted therein to be vaccinated or re-vaccinated unless such patient has been vaccinated or re-vaccinated as required under this Act.
(2) Any medical practitioner attending a female during confinement shall after the birth of a child inform the Superintendent of Vaccination having jurisdiction of such birth and the Superintendent of Vaccination shall take steps for the vaccination of the child within a period of seven days from the receipt of such information.
(3) The Superintendent of every hospital, Medical Officer in charge of every health centre, maternity centre or any other medical institution or the medical authority of every nursing home shall maintain such records and registers as may be prescribed.
13. No person shall, without a valid vaccination certificate, be permitted to enter the premises of any infectious diseases hospital or to enter any ward of a hospital, where persons attacked with small-pox are admitted.
14. It shall be the duty of every owner or occupier of a house, hut, tenement or bustee to see that any person coming to the house, hut, tenement or bustee as a guest or otherwise or any person employed therein as an attendant or a servant, whether on a part-time or full-time basis, has been vaccinated or re-vaccinated, as the case may be.
15. Every owner or occupier of a house, hut, tenement, bustee, boat, vessel, or public vehicle shall allow the Superintendent of Vaccination having jurisdiction or any person duly authorised by him in writing to have access thereto after giving such notice as may be prescribed for the purpose of ascertaining whether the inmates or passengers are vaccinated or re-vaccinated.
16. The State Government may, if it thinks necessary so to do in order to prevent the spread of small-pox, direct, by notification, that for a period to be specified in the notification no child shall be brought within the State of West Bengal without a certificate of successful vaccination or re-vaccination performed within a period of three years prior to the date of entry.
Vaccination in hospital, health centre, etc.
Entry into infectious diseases hospital.
Duty of owner or occupier.
Inspection and detection of unprotected child or person.
Restriction on entry.
145 The West Bengal Vaccination Act, 1973.
[West Ben. Act (Sections 17-24.)
Restriction on admission in educational institutions.
Duty of policeofficer
17. No child or person shall be admitted to any educational institution in West Bengal and no person shall be employed in any office, establishment, educational institution or factory, in West Bengal not being an office, establishment, educational institution or a factory of or under the control of the Central Government without a certificate of successful vaccination or re-vaccination performed within a period of three years prior to the date of admission or employment.
18. It shall be the duty of every police-officer in charge of a policestation to inform the Superintendent of Vaccination having jurisdiction of the existence of any unprotected child or person within the jurisdiction of the police-station when information of the existence of such child or person is given to him by any person and to render all assistance to the Superintendent to perform his functions under this Act.
Vaccination 19. No fee or remuneration shall be charged for any vaccination fee, or re-vaccination performed by a vaccinator other than a medical practitioner or for any certificate given under this Act at a vaccination centre.
Penalty for 20. If an unprotected child who has attained the age of six months not after the commencement of this Act remains unvaccinated, the guardian vaccinating a child within of the child shall be punishable with fine which may extend to fifty the age of six rupees. months.
21. Any guardian of an unprotected child or any unprotected person who contravenes the provisions of section 3, section 4, section 6, subsection (2) of section 9 and sub-section (1) of section 11 and any vaccinator who neglects or refuses to issue any prescribed certificate under this Act shall be punishable with fine which may extend to fifty rupees.
Penalty for . 22. Whoever wilfully signs or procures the signing or making a false certificate. false certificate or duplicate certificate under this Act shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month or with fine not exceeding one hundred rupees or with both.
Penalty for 23. If any vaccinator other than a medical practitioner accepts or accepting illegal agrees to accept or attempts to accept any fee or remuneration, he shall remuneration. be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to two years or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both.
24. If the owner or occupier of a house, hut, tenement or bustee neglects or fails to perform the duty imposed on him under section 14, he shall be punishable with fine which may extend to fifty rupees.
Other penalties.
Penalty for not performing the duty imposed under section 14.
146 The West Bengal Vaccination Act, 1973.
XXXVII of 1973.1 (Sections 25-31.)
25. If the owner or occupier of a house, hut, tenement, bustee, boat, vessel or public vehicle refuses the Superintendent of Vaccination or the person duly authorised by him to have access thereto for the purpose of section 15 without reasonable cause, he shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to two years or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both.
26. Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 17 shall be Penalty for contravene with fine which may extend to fifty rupees. lion of section 17.