Polio campaign kicks off in Balochistan today

17,756,14 children in 20 districts to receive the vaccine

QUEETA: Three-day anti-polio campaign will kick off in 20 districts of Balochistan on Monday (today), said Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) Balochistan Coordinator Syed Faisal Ahmed.

During the campaign, he said, more than 17,756,14 children will be administered the polio vaccine and around 6,761 teams will be engaged in the process with 5,934 mobile teams, 480 fixed sites and 364 transit points.

Security arrangements with the deployment of Balochistan Levies force, police and Frontier Corps personnel have been completed for the campaign.

The districts where the campaign will take place include Quetta, Pishin, Killa Abdullah, Barkhan, Chagai, Jafarabad, Kila Saifulah, Loralai, Duki, Musa Kheel, Naseerabad, Zhob, Sheerani, Jhal Magsi, Khuzdar, Lasbella, Mastung, Noshki, Dera Bugti and Sohbat Pur.



“According to the environmental samples report, polio virus is still prevalent in the country and we are worried that it can affect any child anytime especially those who have less immunity against the disease,” he said.

He expressed satisfaction on the support received by the Balochistan government; however, he said that the campaign could only be successful if parents cooperated with the polio workers.

This year, up till now, seven cases of polio virus have been reported in Pakistan which include one in Chaman of Killa Abdullah district and one in Zhob district.