Anti-polio drive misses on target

RAWALPINDI:

The latest anti-polio campaign in Rawalpindi has concluded without achieving its target, despite an additional day being added to the schedule.

Officials said 900,105 children were vaccinated out of the target of 1,057,756, leaving 69,491 unvaccinated.

Initially, 158,533 children were missed—22 per cent of the total target—but teams revisited the households and vaccinated 56 per cent of them.

However, 44 per cent (69,491 children) still remain unvaccinated.

The administration has now designated "Catch-up Day 4" to focus exclusively on these children to ensure every eligible child receives the life-saving vaccine.

Authorities said persistent refusals are being reported not only from conservative families but also from newly emerging refusal clusters in elite localities like Commercial Market, Satellite Town, and Gulraiz.

Some families refuse to open doors, telling teams, "No baby, no polio," to avoid vaccination.

Environmental samples from Nullah Lai have also tested positive for the poliovirus.