15,215 children not administered anti-polio drops

MULTAN: At least 15,215 children could not be administered anti-polio drops due to their unavailability at their homes and the teams have decided to administer drops on their return from other cities.

The health officials claimed to achieve 104 per cent results successfully during the three days campaign. The Punjab government had launched the campaign in 12 sensitive districts after testing of samples which indicated positive results and surviving polio virus, they said. The 12 sensitive districts are Lahore, Sheikhupura, Bahawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Multan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur, Rahimyar Khan, Layyah, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi and Attock.

Not a single polio case had been reported in the country in 2016 as compared to 2017 when polio virus was found in a child in Lodhran district. Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria are three major countries where poliovirus is feared to survive in selected areas.

Multan district chief executive health Dr Munawar Abbas said that out-of-home children would be administered anti-polio drops in coming days.

He said the five-day special campaign started from November 12 and ended on November 16. The anti-polio teams were assigned the targets of administering drops to 425934 children but they had administered drops to 441713 children, achieving 104 per cent results in five days campaign.

Dr Abbas said that polio eradication teams had covered all refusal cases at schools after hectic efforts. A special task force comprising Assistant Commissioner Mansoor Ahmed, ADCR Arif Zia and medical officer Nasir Dogar visited the refusing parents and administered drops to their children while one FIR was launched against a family which consistently refused the teams.

Meanwhile, the health authorities have launched an FIR with the police against a family on refusing anti-polio drops.