Polio campaign in Punjab as part of National Immunization Day will begin from Monday. The three day campaign will be held from January 16 to 18. The campaign will target 18.4 million children.
“Though Punjab has had no case for a year, persistent circulation of virus means good job has to continue,” Punjab Minister for Primary and Secondary Healthcare Khawaja Imran Nazir said. Secretary Primary and Secondary Healthcare Punjab said the department has constituted over 44 thousand teams in the province which include 37845 mobile teams, 4439 fixed teams and 2370 transit teams.
Pakistan has recorded 20 polio cases this year with 8 in Sindh, 8 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 2 in FATA and 2 in Balochistan. Punjab has had no case in 2016. Globally, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria are the three countries still having polio cases. Punjab is focusing on Multan, Rawalpindi and Lahore because of recent positive environmental samples. Punjab’s Emergency Operation Coordinator Dr. Munir Ahmed said recent environmental samples have been a cause of concern indicating the presence virus in the environment. Dr. Munir Ahmed said: "There were positive samples in Rawalpindi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and DG Khan in Punjab." Dr. Munir also said, “We are trying to reach out to mobile and migrant population coming from polio affected areas. In case of teams not reaching any area, parents may contact helpline 0800 99000."