This was disclosed by speakers at a press conference at a local restaurant in the port city of Chittagong on Friday.

Two NGOs (Non-governmental Organisations) Social Assistance and Rehabilitation for the Physically Vulnerable (SARPV) and Centre for Disabled Concern (CDC) jointly organised the press conference.

"About nine per cent of the total children of the district, particularly of Chakaria upazila have been suffering from the deadly disease. But there is no government step to prevent or to provide healthcare facilities to the affected children in the localities".

Speakers at the conference said that SARPV conducted a research in Cox's Bazar district in 1991. The findings revealed that 4.7 per cent of the children were affected with rickets.

"Now the percentage rose to nine per cent and rickets was spreading fast".

SARPV also found in a preliminary research that lack of calcium is the main cause of the disease.

"We have conducted operation on the affected parts of 114 children and we succeeded after taking preventive steps by providing 128 children with high calcium enriched food."

The speakers recommended for bringing a change in food habit, supplying nutrition enriched food to children and parents and ensuring a healthy environment to get rid of the deadly disease. Otherwise, they feared that the disease might cripple 20 per cent of children in next 10 years.

They sought government attention to control spread of the disease immediately.

Among others, Shahidul Haque, chief executive of SARPV, Pierre hilaire, AMD-France, Morgan Carlo, KDM-France, Selim Nazrul, executive director of CDC, SM Moin Ahmed, executive director of SARPV were present at the press conference.