A total of 36,511 children under the age of five were vaccinated on the first day of a three-day anti-polio campaign in Islamabad.
This was said in a briefing given at the CDA Directorate of Health Services on Monday evening. The meeting was convened on the directions of CDA Chairman Syed Tahir Shahbaz to review the performance of supervisors and vaccination teams. A total of 126,000 children in three days will be vaccinated in three days.
The meeting concluded that the target for the first day was 37,287 and the coverage was 36,511, which comes out to be 98%.
Meanwhile, in a separate meeting, Rawalpindi Executive District Officer (EDO) Health Dr Zafar Iqbal Gondal said that a total of 708,000 children in Rawalpindi District will be vaccinated during the ongoing anti-polio campaign in the district.
He said 1,397 mobile teams have been formed to carry out the vaccination. In addition, 259 special centres have been established in health vicinities, while 85 teams have been constituted to perform vaccination at airports, railway stations, public parks and bus stands.
The EDO said 267 area in-charges have been deputed to supervise the campaign in union councils, adding that special arrangements have been made to increase the campaign’s awareness through announcements in mosques.
The police, he added, have been directed to lodge FIRs against people creating trouble for the vaccination teams.
6.2m to be vaccinated in K-P, FATA
In addition, as many as 6.2 million children in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) will be vaccinated during the three-day campaign.
Unicef Media Officer Shadab Younas said the drive has been started in all agencies of Fata except for South and North Waziristan agencies, where polio teams are not allowed access.
She said 15,500 teams have been dispatched to conduct the drive in K-P, while 3,500 teams have been sent to Fata.
“So far 15 cases of polio have surfaced in Fata, but we are hopeful that with Unicef’s resources the disease will be eradicated,” said Younas.
*With additional input from APP and our correspondent in Peshawar
Published in The Express Tribune, October 16th, 2012.
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