Pakistan polio eradication campaign in disarray, country reports 12 new cases this year
The Hindu
The new case — a 21-month-old boy who had the onset of paralysis on June 18 — was reported on July 14 from Union Council 2 of Mir Ali area.
Pakistan has reported its 12th polio case this year, all in the tribal district of North Waziristan bordering Afghanistan, in a fresh blow to the country’s efforts to eradicate the crippling disease, which can cause severe paralysis in children. Pakistan is one of the two polio-endemic countries in the world along with its neighbour Afghanistan.
The new case — a 21-month-old boy who had the onset of paralysis on June 18 — was reported on July 14 from Union Council 2 of Mir Ali area. The child has been paralysed in the right leg, according to preliminary investigations.
All the 12 cases this year have been reported from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) North Waziristan district, with nine of them detected from Mir Ali alone, the Dawn newspaper reported. However, other areas also remain vulnerable, it said.
“KP’s southern districts, namely North and South Waziristan, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, Tank and Lakki Marwat, are at the highest risk of wild poliovirus transmission,” the report quoted an official as saying.
“Bannu also reported two positive environmental samples between April and May this year, confirming that ongoing poliovirus transmission is not limited to North Waziristan,” he said.
KP Special Assistant on Information Muhammad Ali Saif has said the provincial government was committed to eradicating the crippling disease. In a statement issued on Thursday, he said the provincial government was working to make the province polio-free.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in April that his government was committed to ending all forms of polio in the country, as he appreciated U.S. philanthropist Bill Gates for his help in eradicating the crippling disease.
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