10 more cases of polio reported as national total rises to 184

Of those confirmed, 4 cases were from Khyber Agency, 2 from FR Bannu, 2 from Gadap in Karachi and one in Bannu.

PESHAWAR: Even as vaccination drives kicked off in various parts of the country on Monday, a government official confirmed that ten more polio cases have been reported from different parts of the country.

An official from the health ministry said the polio cases were tested at the polio virology laboratory at National Institute of Health (NIH) and then confirmed.

Those infected were identified as a 10-month-old boy from Jani Khel in Frontier Region (FR) Bannu; six-month-old girl from Bakka Khel area of FR Bannu and a 48-month-old female from Koga union council, Buner.

The parents of a poliovirus infected 14-month-old boy from Mayar, Mardan had refused vaccination.

The victims from Bara in Khyber Agency include a six-month-old boy from Mera Aka Khel; a seven-month-old boy from Ajab Talab, Shin Drang; a 15-month-old girl from Ajab Talab and a one-year-old girl from Mera Aka Khel.

From Karachi, where a polio vaccination campaign kickstarted on Monday, two children from Gadap Town were diagnosed with the crippling virus. Parents of 12-month-old girl from Moosa Market refused to vaccinate her as did the parents of a 25-month-old boy from Madina Madarsa.

The official added with these 10 cases, the year’s total has risen to 184. Of these, 127 cases were reported from Fata, 33 from K-P, 17 from Sindh, two from Punjab and five from Balochistan.