Anti-polio drive from Aug 2

LAHORE:The Punjab government is all set to launch Sub-National Immunisation Drive (SNID) in 11 districts of the province from August 2.

The 11 districts which have been made part of the polio campaign are: Lahore, Sheikhupura, Okara, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Multan, Muzaffargarh, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur, Rahimyar Khan and Rajanpur.

In her statement, head of the polio programme, Ms Sundas Irshad, reiterated that the declining trend of reported polio cases and negative environmental samples indicated a positive epidemiological outlook for polio eradication in Punjab.

The decision to include the 11 districts in the campaign was based on the provincial epidemiology and risk assessment. Nearly 10 million children will be vaccinated in the five-day drive which would continue till August 6. The head of the polio programme, however, underscored that the current gains of the programme were fragile and could easily be reversed, especially during high transmission season when the virus was especially active.

“This is the most critical time for the programme. Reaching and sustaining zero polio cases and transmission requires even greater efforts. We must continue to focus on implementing high-quality campaigns that reach all children under the five years of age,” she added. She stressed the parents to cooperate with the polio teams and vaccinate their children during the campaign so that polio was eradicated from Pakistan.