Islamabad:

Pakistan reported another case of poliovirus after a child was paralysed in the Sindh province, increasing the country’s total tally to 16 in 2024, an official told the media on Friday.

An official from the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad said that the wild Poliovirus type-1 (WPV1) was confirmed in a 29-month-old girl from Hyderabad district of the province, Xinhua news agency reported.

According to the official, poliovirus traces have been reported in 62 districts of the South Asian country so far this year, a significant increase from 28 districts last year.

“This is the first polio case from Hyderabad and the third from Sindh, and the 16th case in Pakistan this year,” said the NIH official, adding that 12 cases were reported from the southwestern Balochistan province, three from Sindh, and one from the eastern Punjab province.

Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication Ayesha Raza Farooq said, “The latest case is a clear reminder that until we eradicate this virus from our country, no child anywhere is safe from its devastating effects.”

She added that WPV1 was consistently being reported in sewage samples of Hyderabad for the last four months, reiterating the continued risk of polio circulating anywhere in the country.

“We are operating on an emergency footing in all provinces given the intensity of the outbreak and extent of virus spread. The polio program has been implementing a comprehensive roadmap to interrupt virus transmission, beginning with an extensive, large-scale polio vaccination campaign from September 9,” she said.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Anwar-ul-Haq, coordinator of the National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication, said a thorough investigation was being conducted to identify the origins of the virus and immunisation of children.

“Poliovirus has been circulating in adjacent districts of Karachi and Hyderabad for several months,” he said.

“Every child’s wellbeing is important to us, and we will be launching a vaccination campaign in all affected districts from September 9 to boost children’s immunity.”

Polio has been eliminated in developed nations but persists in parts of India, Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Many Pakistanis, particularly those residing in the conservative tribal areas, consider polio vaccination a Western campaign aimed at sterilising the country’s population. In 2012, the local Taliban ordered a ban on immunisation against polio in some tribal districts.

Nearly a dozen policemen have been killed this year while on security duty during vaccination campaigns which are frequently targeted by operatives.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

A woman receives polio drops while waiting to cross main Afghanistan-Pakistan land border crossing, in Pakistan. File
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

Pakistan has reported the fourth polio case of the year, jolting the country’s efforts to eradicate the crippling disease.

The case was reported on Saturday as the government appointed a new head of the polio eradication programme after his predecessor stepped down during the week.

The Dawn newspaper reported having a document showing that the victim was a 30-month-old child hailing from the Lakhi region of the Shikarpur district of the Sindh province.

The child was taken to a hospital after he suddenly developed weakness in both lower limbs and could not hold his neck up, according to the report.

This case was the first to be reported from the Sindh province, as the previous three victims belonged to Balochistan.

According to the National Institute of Health in Islamabad, the newest case was also of the Type-1 Wild Poliovirus (WPV1), just like the previous three cases.

The Prime Minister’s coordinator on National Health Services, Dr. Malik Mukhtar Bharat, said teams have been deployed to conduct a full case investigation.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Health Services appointed Muhammad Anwarul Haq, the ministry’s joint secretary, as the National Emer­gency Operation Centre for Polio Eradication coordinator on Saturday.

He replaced Dr. Shahzad Baig, who resigned on Friday, citing personal reasons.

Additionally, a new campaign to vaccinate over 16.5 million children under the age of five in 66 districts will be launched on Monday.

The drive, planned ahead of the peak travel season of Eidul Azha, will fully cover 36 districts and partially 30 districts.

These areas included Islamabad, 20 districts of Balochistan, 23 of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 16 of Sindh and six of Punjab. It will be the fifth polio vaccination campaign of the year.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only countries in the world where polio remains endemic, according to the World Health Organisation.