Balochistan

Anti-polio drive to kick off in Balochistan today

2.4m children in 33 districts to be vaccinated during 5-day drive

Mohammad Zafar January 11, 2021

Vaccinators wear protective masks as they get their temperature checked, during an anti-polio campaign, in a low-income neighborhood as the spread of the coronavirus disease continues, in Karachi. PHOTO: REUTERS

QUETTA:

Balochistan Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) Coordinator Rashid Razzaq said five-day polio campaign will kick off on Monday (today) in 33 districts of the province.

“All preparations for the drive have been completed in which more than 2.4 million children up to five years of age would be vaccinated against polio,” said Razzaq on Sunday, adding the children would also be administered Vitamin-A drops during the campaign.

Briefing on the arrangements for the campaign, the coordinator said 10,553 teams would be deployed across the province to ensure every child of the province is vaccinated against the crippling disease. He added 8,692 would be mobile teams, 941 fixed teams and 559 transit teams.

The coordinator maintained the provincial administration would deploy Levies, police and Frontier Corps for the security of polio workers and to prevent unforeseen situation, adding religious scholars would take part in the drive to persuade parents who refuse to administer anti-polio drops to their children.

“We appreciate the efforts of front-line workers but we have to strive more to prevent our children from contracting polio virus,” said Razzaq. In 2020, 26 polio cases were reported from Balochistan while 84 cases of the crippling disease were confirmed across the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 11^th, 2021.