Week-long Karachi vaccination drive kicks off

Five-day campaign also under way in other parts of province

KARACHI: A week-long vaccination campaign against polio started in Karachi on Monday to immunise 2.4 million children under five years of age.

Sindh Coordinator for Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) for Polio Eradication Fayyaz Jatoi said 12,000 polio vaccinators and volunteers are engaged in the exercise.

As many as 5,000 police personnel have been deputed to provide security cover to the workers involved in the door-to-door exercise across the metropolis.

In reply to a query, Jatoi said that although no polio case has been reported from any part of the province during the current year, the vaccination exercise is being carried out in all the 24 districts of the province to strengthen the immunity of the children against the virus.



A seven-day campaign is being carried out in Karachi due to its size and population while a five-day campaign is under way in other parts of the province with a target population of 5,973,287 children, including those belonging to the metropolis.

To another query, Jatoi said all sections of society are being involved to make the campaign successful. He reiterated that the major responsibility lies with parents to ensure protection of their children against a disease that continues to persist in the country.

"The situation is improving due to repeated and intense campaigns and the need of the hour is to sustain it till the virus is actually eradicated from our environment," he emphasised.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 7^th, 2018.