Commissioner Larkana Division Dr. Rasheed Masood Khan presided over a Divisional Task Force meeting at his office on Thursday to review arrangements for the 10-day anti-polio campaign scheduled to be conducted from August 8 to 18.
10-Day Anti-Polio Campaign to Begin in Larkana Division from August 8″ Commissioner
LARKANA, Aug 06 (APP):Commissioner Larkana Division Dr. Rasheed Masood Khan presided over a Divisional Task Force meeting at his office on Thursday to review arrangements for the 10-day anti-polio campaign scheduled to be conducted from August 8 to 18.
Addressing the participants, Commissioner Dr. Rasheed Masood Khan said that the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) needed to remain more vigilant and work effectively to protect children against vaccine-preventable diseases.
He termed the negative results of all four environmental samples from the division a major success and said the credit went to all teams for their dedicated efforts. He stressed that regular monitoring and daily evening review meetings were extremely important to evaluate the campaign’s progress on a daily basis.
The Commissioner also called for greater awareness regarding the breastfeeding campaign, which is being carried out alongside other health initiatives.
Briefing the meeting, focal person of the Divisional Task Force Dr. Aziz Ahmed said that one polio case had been reported in Sindh, while neighbouring Afghanistan was facing 15 polio cases.
He said that during the upcoming campaign, polio drops would be administered to children aged one to 10 years, as six polio cases had been detected among children above five years of age.
Dr. Aziz Ahmed said that the target for the campaign was approximately 0.9 million children, which was almost double the previous target due to the expansion of the eligible age group.
He further said that soaps would also be distributed among children as a token of promoting sanitation and hygiene.
According to Dr. Aziz Ahmed, 13 union councils (UCs) had been identified as vulnerable due to the migration and movement of populations. Logistics, vaccines, caps and other necessary campaign materials had been distributed among the districts.
He emphasized that the support of the Education, Revenue, Local Government and Police departments was vital for the successful implementation of the campaign.
Deputy Commissioner Shikarpur Shakeel Abro said that all necessary preparations had been completed.
Deputy Commissioner Larkana Tariq Manzoor Chandio said that meetings had been held, awareness seminars and training sessions conducted, and all relevant line departments involved in the campaign.
Deputy Commissioners of Qambar Shahdadkot, Jacobabad and Kashmore-Kandhkot also briefed the meeting through video link about arrangements for the campaign in their respective districts.
Officers from the Health, Police and Local Government departments attended the meeting, while the Deputy Commissioners participated through video link.
