Five-day anti-polio drive from Sept 20

LALAMUSA: A five-day anti-polio drive will be launched in the district from September 20 and more than 442,593 children up to the age of five years will be inoculated.

Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mehtab Waseem Azhar stated this while chairing a meeting of District Anti-Polio Committee.He said vitamin-A capsules would also be given to the children up to the age of six months to five years and the number of mobile teams will be increased from 899 to 1,612 to make the drive successful.

The meeting was told that the number of households fixed for each team has been reduced from 250 to 100.The meeting was told that 3,846 anti-polio workers would be on duty during anti-polio campaign in the district while, 2,296 personnel were on duty earlier.

The number of UCMOs (Urgent Care Medical Officers) for monitoring has been increased to 313.The DC directed the Health Department officials to finalise the comprehensive micro-plan by arranging additional staff by August 20. All departments will be obliged to provide staff for human resources.

He said that during the anti-polio campaign, there would be a third-party audit of children who were not available, closed houses, marks on children’s hands and of the parents who refused, for which separate teams would be formed.

He directed all departments including Police, Education Department, Population Welfare Department, Municipal Corporation and Municipal Committees to provide full support to the Health Department for the success of anti-polio campaign.

MS Aziz Bhatti Shaheed Hospital Dr Abid Mahmood Ghori, CEO Health Dr Naeem Akhtar Janjua, CEO Education Chaudhry Aurangzeb, DHOs Dr Ayaz Nasir, Dr Zakir Ali Rana, DO Civil Defense Ashfaq Ahmed, Deputy Director Social Welfare Zubair Ahmed, District Forest Officer Rashid Chattha, heads of other departments and members of civil society were also present on the occasion.