Four new polio cases reported in Mastung, total this year jumps to 10
- By Web Desk -
- Nov 06, 2018
MASTUNG: Despite frequent polio eradication drives across the country, four more cases of the crippling disease have been reported in Mastung on Tuesday, bringing the total number of polio cases in the country to ten this year so far.
As per details shared by the local health department, four children, including two boys and girls, aged between 5 to 8 years have been diagnosed with polio virus in Sherein Aab, area of Mastung.
The National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) for Polio Eradication on October 17, notified two new polio cases from Gadap area of Karachi and a tribal district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The first case of polio was confirmed in a 42 month-old girl from Gadap, Karachi and the other case in a 55-month old female child in Khyber tribal district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The lab detected Polio virus from their stool samples on the 1st of October and 30th September respectively. Fortunately, both girls had received multiple doses of the Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) which boosted their immunity and protected them from a life-long paralysis.
Babar Bin Atta, the Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication said “The polio virus has been continuously found in the sewerage water of Peshawar and Karachi for the last 12 months,” adding that, the programme will continue to focus on clearing these two remaining reservoirs from the virus with full force.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran Khan will chair meeting of National Task Force on Polio Eradication on Friday ( November 9) in the federal capital.
In order to ensure complete elimination of the disease from the entire country, important decisions will be taken in the high-level meeting, sources said.
All the four chief ministers, chief sectaries, representatives of the Pakistan Army, interior ministry and officials of the National Task Force on polio eradication will table their proposals in the meeting. Representatives of WHO, UNICEF and international donors are also expected to attend the meeting.