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LAHORE, Oct 09 (APP):The Punjab government will launch national anti-polio campaign across the province from October 13.
The campaign will run for seven days in Lahore and for five days in all other districts.
A meeting of the Provincial Task Force on Polio Eradication was held at the Civil
Secretariat here on Thursday. Provincial Health Minister Khawaja Imran Nazir,
Chief Secretary Punjab Zahid Akhtar Zaman, Chief Minister’s Focal Person on
Polio Uzma Kardar, secretaries of the health, home, and education departments,
and representatives of international partners working on polio eradication attended
the meeting while all divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners participated
via video link.
The task force expressed serious concern over the presence of poliovirus in environmental
samples from Lahore. As a result, it was decided that a special anti-polio campaign
would be conducted in 122 union councils of the district in November. It also issued
necessary instructions for provision of security for polio teams operating in Dera
Ghazi Khan, Rajanpur, Rahim Yar Khan, and Mianwali.
Speaking at the meeting, Health Minister Khawaja Imran Nazir said that despite
significant progress in polio eradication efforts in Punjab, the continued presence
of virus poses a serious risk. He added: “It is absolutely critical that every child
is vaccinated to halt its transmission.” He also stressed the importance of focusing
on ‘missed children’ – those who are left unvaccinated during the campaign.
The Chief Secretary directed the deputy commissioners to ensure special arrangements
for vaccinating children in flood-affected areas, and to deploy dedicated teams at
inter-provincial borders and transit points to vaccinate mobile populations to help
prevent the spread of the virus. “By addressing operational gaps and strengthening
coordination, we can achieve complete eradication of the poliovirus in Punjab,”
the Chief Secretary emphasized.
Adeel Tasawur, the head of the Punjab Polio Eradication Program, gave a detailed
briefing during the meeting. He stated that more than 22.5 million children across
Punjab would be administered polio vaccine during the campaign, with 200,000 polio
workers performing duties.