Anti-polio drive tees off

Islamabad: A four-day anti-polio campaign kicked off in Islamabad Monday under the supervision of the Assistant Commissioner for administration of polio vaccine to a target child population of 313,383.

As many as 56 zonal officers and 293 area in-charges will supervise the campaign in 293 areas of the capital city. A total of 1,197 mobile teams have been mobilized for participation in the campaign; 115 fixed spots have also been earmarked for administration of polio drops to eligible children. In all, 1,408 teams are participating in this first anti-polio campaign of the year.

The federal government has made stringent security arrangements for the protection of teams that will go door-to-door for administration of polio drops. As many as 950 policemen will supervise the activity, for which the FC has issued a special security plan.

Pakistan closed 2017 with 8 cases of polio, and even though this is the lowest-ever case count in the country’s history of polio eradication, the challenge is far from over because poliovirus continues to circulate in sewage samples across even major cities. While there is no room for complacency and celebration, the job will be considered to have been completed, three years after there are zero cases in the country—this being the World Health Organization’s standard protocol for complete eradication of the disease from any country.