ISLAMABAD, Nov 07 (APP):Over 25 million children have been immunized against polio during a five-day sub-national vaccination campaign in 83 districts of the country.
According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, during the campaign, the polio drops were administered to children under five years of age in districts including southern Khyber Pakthunkhwa (KP) where the current outbreak was reported.
He said that out of total 83 districts, the children were vaccinated in 21 districts of Sindh, 14 districts of Punjab, 28 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 18 districts of Balochistan, and two areas of Islamabad.
Minister for National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination, Abdul Qadir Patel appreciated the efforts of front-line workers and security organizations during the drive. He said that recent polio cases have made Pakistan more determined to fight the virus till its complete elimination.
Qadir Patel said, Pakistan’s Polio Programme continues to work hard to reach zero polio cases, and the recent cases in Pakistan have made us more determined to fight this virus till the end.
He said that Wild Polio Virus Type-1 (WPV1) was detected in environmental samples collected from 11 districts of the country including Bannu, Peshawar, Swat, Nowshera, South Waziristan, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur, Islamabad, and Landhi in Karachi.
He said that the next polio immunization drive would be launched on November 21 at the national level. The government is making sincere efforts in controlling the disease with the support of its front-line polio workers, he added.
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