Summary Proper security of polio workers have been ensured by deploying FC, police and Levis personnel.
QUETTA (Dunya News) – A three-day anti-polio drive in Balochistan’s 15 districts including Quetta has started from today (Monday).
According to Emergency Operation Center (ECO) Coordinator Syed Faisal Ahmed, the campaign would inoculate more than 16 lac children below age five in Quetta, Qila Saifullah, Qila Abdullah, Naseerabad, Jafferabad, Pashin, Loralai, Dera Bugti, Lasbela, Sherani. Zhob Jhal Magsi, Barkhan, Musa Khel and Khuzdar.
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3,875 mobile teams have been arranged for the cause while 402 fixed sites and 213 transit points have been developed.
Proper security of polio workers have been ensured by deploying Frontier Corps (FC), police and Levis personnel in parts of Balochistan.
On the other hand, polio drops would also be administered to children aging 10 years near Pak-Afghan border gate.
The coordinator said that only polio case been surfaced in the province in the current year so far.
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Attacks on polio teams in Balochistan and other parts of the country have complicated vaccination drives for health authorities. In January at least 15 persons were killed in a blast outside an anti-polio centre in Quetta.
Attacks in a city impact health department’s activities in other cities as well. An attack on an anti-polio team in Karachi in April martyred seven policemen resultantly, a drive, ongoing in Multan was deferred for as many as seven days.
However, number of polio cases has declined in the recent years in Pakistan. Year 2015 witnessed 54 cases in the country which was an 80 percent fall from the earlier figures.
Reach of polio teams to remote areas in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of the country was supported by successful Operation Zarb-e-Azb that was launched in mid 2014 to eradicate militancy.
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At least 98 percent of children were vaccinated against the crippling virus in FATA in March which was a big leap for health authorities compared with previous years when teams could not reach different areas owing to threats and insurgency.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries left in the world that are struggling with eradication of polio.
