No polio case reported in Sindh since July 2020: CM Murad Ali Shah

KARACHI: Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah Friday said that the province has not reported a single polio case since July 2020 as he launched the immunization drive in the province, ARY NEWS reported.

The chief minister and Health Minister Azra Fazl Pechuhu administered polio drops to the children to kick off the drive with the former saying that the campaign will continue from February 28 to March 06.

“10 million children will be administered polio drops in 30 districts of the province,” he said and added, “70,000 polio workers are participating in the drive.”

While sharing the achievement of the previous drives, Murad Ali Shah said that no case of the crippling disease has been reported since July 2020 while traces of poliovirus were not found in sewage across the province since July 2021.

“The only case reported in Pakistan was from Balochistan in 2021,” Murad Ali Shah said.

Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan on Wednesday announced that more than 4.3 million children will be administered anti-polio drops during the first immunization campaign of 2022.

Sharing details of the drive, he said that the campaign has been launched from six southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. “However, the formal launch of the anti-polio drive will be made from February 28,” he said.

Faisal Sultan shared that during the drive, 339,521 health workers will visit homes to administer the drops. “Pakistan is committed to the elimination of polio from the country,” he said and added that the country has achieved the target of a polio-free year on January 27.