Pakistan reports 18th polio case from North Waziristan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has reported the 18th polio case from North Waziristan, a district that has been a hotbed of the crippling disease in the country, ARY News reported.

The spokesperson for the National Institute of Health (NIC) said that the south and northern districts of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province have been declared sensitive and emergency measures are being taken to completely eradicate polio from the country.

After staying in a polio-free country for almost 15 months, Pakistan has reported 18th case of poliovirus in 2022 so far.

In April 2022, Pakistan national polio laboratory confirmed that the first polio case was detected in North Waziristan, 15 months after the last poliovirus case had been reported back on January 27, 2021, from Killa Abdullah – Balochistan.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has directed the authorities concerned to provide additional manpower and resources to polio teams, ARY News reported, quoting Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).