Commissioner Bannu division inaugurates anti-polio campaign

LAKKI MARWAT: Commissioner Bannu division Parwaiz Sabatkhel inaugurated anti-polio campaign by administering oral polio vaccine to a child on Saturday.The child was also inoculated with a fractional dose of the inactivated poliovirus (IPV) vaccine at a ceremony held in the commissioner’s office, and attended by Deputy Commissioner Manzoor Afridi, Deputy Coordinator Eid Nawaz Sherani and officials of health department and partner organisations.

The five-day campaign will commence from May 29. Speaking on the occasion, the commissioner asked the parents to vaccinate their children against the crippling disease.

“The region is in an endemic zone and concerted efforts are the need of the day to free the region of polio,” he maintained.

He said the divisional and district administrations would extend full support to the health department and partner organisation to make efforts aiming to eradicate polio.

In Bannu, the health department has constituted 736 teams to immunise 244834 children below the age of five against polio. Each team is composed of four members including two community mobilisers, one skilled person and one team assistant.

A total of 577 teams have been tasked with field assignment to administer anti-polio vaccine to children, 74 fixed teams to vaccinate kids in hospitals and health centres and 85 transit teams with immunisation assignment at bus stands, busy public places and roads.

Also in the day, Additional Deputy Commissioner Islahuddin and District Health Officer Dr Muhammad Rehman Afridi asked the media personnel to play their role in educating people about the usefulness of anti-polio vaccine for kids’ health.

Speaking at an orientation session, they said that more than 2,42,000 children under the age of five were at risk due to the poliovirus circulation in Bannu district.

Dr Junaid from the provincial emergency operation centre and Dr Arsalan of the EPI were also present.

Officials said that the country would have been freed from polio, had people cooperated with health workers in routine immunisation.

The routine immunisation is helpful to save children from 14 deadly diseases including polio, they maintained.

WANA: Deputy Commissioner Lower South Waziristan Muhammad Nasir Khan and Assistant Commissioner Wana Yasir Salman Kundi officially inaugurated the anti-polio campaign, being conducted from May 29 to June 5, 2023.

During the 8-day campaign, 69,059 children out of the total 73,462 children between the ages of four months and 5 years, will be administered vaccines as well as fIPV vaccination in Lower South Waziristan.

Muhammad Nasir Khan told the media on the occasion that the entire world is free of polio, but unfortunately the poliovirus is still present in Afghanistan and Pakistan, for which measures have to be taken on an emergency basis and every member of society has to play a role to defeat this epidemic.

Around 720 social mobilisers, 199 scale persons, 60 first level supervisors, 37 union council medical officers, 36 other staffers in union councils will perform duties in the campaign.

The deputy commissioner emphasised on all sections of society to protect the future of their children from the lifelong disability of polio and to actively participate in the polio campaign to create a healthy society, and play their due role towards ensuring a polio-free Pakistan.