Filling the void: Khasadars to administer anti-polio drops in Jamrud

JAMRUD: Around 200 khasadar officials were provided basic training in administering anti-polio drops in Jamrud, Khyber Agency on Friday.

The move comes following the refusal of health department officials and teachers to take part in polio-eradication campaigns in the area due to unabated attacks on polio workers.

Asmatullah Wazir, an official of the Jamrud political administration, said in order to fill the vacuum, the political administration directed khasadar officials to administer the crucial vaccine to children. Wazir said around 200 khasadar officials were selected to launch the anti-polio campaign in the area, adding the officials would also be used in the future, both for administering drops and providing security to health workers.

Khyber Agency Surgeon Dr Sameen Jan Shinwari said, “We want to continue with the campaign no matter what.” He said khasadar officials were provided adequate training to get the job done from a medical perspective.

However, khasadar officials who took part in the training are reluctant to take on their new role. An official on duty at the Ali Masjid area of Jamrud who undertook the training said health officials and teachers have refused to carry out the campaign owing to security threats. “We are also humans, we can get killed too,” said the official, requesting anonymity. He said he, like other officials, had no choice but to take on the new task.

“We already have our plates full fighting militants and now we have the added responsibility of giving polio drops to children,” said a khasadar official deployed in Ghundai area of Jamrud. He said it is still better to be killed on duty than be fired and forced to beg on the street. “I am only doing this to feed my family,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 28^th, 2013.