Polio immunization drive to begin in Sindh from June 07

KARACHI: A seven-day anti-polio immunization campaign will begin in the Sindh province from June 07, setting a target to administer polio drops to 9.4 million children, ARY NEWS reported.

The decision was taken by the provincial task force on the anti-polio drive during a meeting that was also attended by divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners, World Health Organization (WHO) representatives, and others.

It was briefed that meetings have been held in 30 districts of the province to assess the training of polio workers besides providing them with facemasks, PPEs, and other necessary equipment to avoid contracting COVID-19.

It was directed to the entire polio team to ensure the achievement of 100 percent targets set for the immunization drive.

Speaking during the meeting, Health Minister Azra Fazl Pechuhu urged the public to cooperate with the polio workers and ensure the administration of drops to their children below the age of five years.

“Social mobilizers and influencers should be approached to persuade parents refusing drops,” she said adding that as many as 71,000 polio workers would be part of the immunization drive.

It is pertinent to mention here that a report recently noted that the poliovirus has vanished from most parts of the country in recent tests of the sewage samples.

According to sources, 93 percent of sewage samples collected from four provinces of the country found clear of the polio virus.

It is the second instance in two months when over 90 pct sewage samples are found free from the virus of the crippling disease. The extensive environmental surveillance established by the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme collects sewage water samples to detect the polio virus across the country.

The sewage samples were collected and tested at the beginning of last month from more than 60 places across the country, sources said.

The polio virus not confirmed in the sewage water samples collected from Landhi and Gulshan Iqbal areas in Karachi.

The sewage water samples from Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Multan, Rajanpur, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Gujranwala, Quetta, Zhob, Naseerabad, Khuzdar, Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Kurram, Bajaur, and Diamir were also found clear of the polio-virus in detection tests, according to sources.