Polio virus reemerges in Pindi's sewage

Officials term 2025 drive successful despite renewed environmental detection

RAWALPINDI:

Polio virus has once again been detected in Rawalpindi's sewage, triggering concern within the health department and district administration.

As a result, authorities have refrained from repeating last year's statement declaring Rawalpindi polio-free.

While the health department termed the polio campaign conducted during the outgoing year as highly successful, surveys revealed the presence of vaccine-refusing families even in posh areas such as Satellite Town.

Officials stated that during 2025, five National Immunisation Days and one Sub-National Immunisation Day were successfully conducted in Rawalpindi.

All campaigns were completed with effective planning, strict monitoring, and strong field performance.

A total of 225 union council supervisors, 765 area supervisors, 4,731 mobile teams, 262 fixed sites, and 194 transit teams participated in the campaigns.

Post-campaign assessments showed successful results, with 98 per cent market survey coverage recorded during the year.

During the last national polio campaign held in December 2025, the door-to-door vaccination target was 744,940 children, out of which 719,623 were vaccinated, achieving 97 per cent coverage.

Vaccination was also carried out for out-of-house children, in educational institutions, for visiting children, and at fixed sites and transit points.

Briefing the media after the campaign, Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Dr Hasan Waqar Cheema said the district requires extra effort, effective planning, and special attention for polio eradication due to continuous population movement. He appreciated the efforts of the district administration, health department, and polio teams.

Polio Focal Person Uzma Kardar said the Punjab government is committed to making the province polio-free and expressed confidence that the target would be achieved in 2026. The health department has also approved launching a new anti-polio campaign in January 2026 with renewed commitment and targets.