Anti-polio drive kicks off in 15 districts today

Religious scholars will also take part in the campaign

QUETTA: A three-day polio vaccination drive targeting more than 1.3 million children under five years of age is being kicked off today (Monday) in 15 districts of Balochistan.

According to Rashid Razzaq, the Coordinator of the Emergency Operation Centre for Polio, all preparations have been finalised for the anti-polio drive.

As many as 5,735 polio teams – including 4,917 mobile teams – would be deployed in the 15 districts. Of the rest, 454 would be deployed at fixed points and 364 at transit points.

The drive will cover Quetta, Pishin, Killa Abdullah, Killa Saifullah, Bolan, Dera Bugti, Jhal Magsi, Zhob, Mastung, Naseerabad, Jaffarabad, Lasbela, Sibi, Sohbatpur and Ziarat. Moreover, Quetta, Killa Abdullah and Pishin have been declared high-risk areas.



Razzaq said in a statement that security personnel belonging to the Frontier Corps, the Levies and the police would provide security to the polio staff.

This time, he added, religious scholars would also take part in the anti-polio drive as counsellors tasked with persuading parents not to deny polio vaccination to their children on religious grounds.

Well-known experts had also endorsed the vaccination campaign, he claimed.

Urging parents to get their children vaccinated, the polio centre coordinator expressed the hope that with the support of the civil society, religious scholars and the media, major targets would be achieved.

“Parents should cooperate with the polio staff and get their children vaccinated against polio and save them from lifetime disability,” he said.

At least three polio cases have been reported from Balochistan this year. Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria are the only countries in the world where polio virus still exists.