LAHORE: Punjab is hoping for a zero polio year as it prepares to launch a three-day anti-polio campaign from December 19 to 21.
The campaign will target 18.4 million under-five children.
“Even though there has not been a single case of polio during the last 12 months in Punjab, persistent circulation of virus means that the threat is still there,” Punjab Minister for Primary and Secondary Healthcare Khawaja Imran Nazir said.
In this connection, Secretary Primary and Secondary Healthcare Ali Jan Khan has directed administration of all districts to ensure compliance with indicators of the National Emergency Action for Polio Eradication. As part of the plan, all districts are required to prepare micro-plans and hold preparatory meetings under the supervision of district coordination officers (DCOs).
Punjab Health Services Director General Dr Mukhtar Hussain Syed reviewed the campaign preparations in the provincial Emergency Operation Centre on Friday, and directed officials concerned to lay special emphasis in Multan, Rawalpindi and Lahore because of recent positive environmental samples.
Punjab’s Emergency Operation Coordinator Dr Munir Ahmed said that recent environmental samples had been a cause of concern. Dr Munir Ahmed, who had won global acclaim for controlling dengue epidemic between 2011 to 2013, said: “At the fag end of the year, we are going to give this campaign our best shot. We have had three positive samples apiece in Lahore and Rawalpindi, two in Faisalabad and one each in Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan.”
Dr Munir continued: “As many as 44,654 teams have been constituted in the province which include 37,845 mobile teams, 4439 fixed teams and 2370 transit teams. We are trying to reach out to mobile and migrant population coming from polio affected areas.”
Pakistan has recoded 19 polio cases this year with eight each reported in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, two in FATA and one in Balochistan. Punjab has had no case this year. Globally, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria are the three countries still having polio cases.
Pakistan has made great progress towards polio eradication in the last year, bringing down toll from 306 in 2014 to 54 in 2015, and to 19 in 2016.
