PESHAWAR, June 5: NWFP Health Minister Inayatullah Khan has said that the polio eradication campaign has entered the final stage and has appealed to people to ensure the administration of anti-polio drops to their children below the age of five.

He was addressing the inaugural ceremony of a three-day anti-polio campaign in the NWFP and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas held at the auditorium of the Nursing School of the Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH) on Monday.

He said that it was the religious as well as the moral obligations of parents to immunise their wards against the ailment.

The ceremony was also addressed by deputy director of the expanded programme on immunisation (EPI), Dr Waheed Khan, WHO official Dr Abraham and KTH Chief Executive Dr Changez Hakim Khan.

The minister inaugurated the anti-polio drive by administering polio drops to children. He said that due to continuous efforts polio had been controlled to a considerable extent in the province.

He elaborated that in 1994 when the campaign was started, there were 419 reported cases of polio while in the current year only one case had been reported.

“The polio virus was diagnosed to be non-indigenous, which is a great achievement,” he said.

Rejecting some misconceptions about polio vaccine, the minister said that it contained no ingredients, which could cause infertility. He went on to say that religious leaders and scholars had been involved in the drive.

Stressing the need of strengthening routine EPI, he urged parents to ensure administration of vaccine against seven preventable diseases. He asked parents to realise their responsibilities and protect the future of their children.

WHO’s Dr Abraham said that 95 per cent achievement had been gained in reducing polio virus circulation in the province. He said that anyone who had any doubt about polio vaccine should get it tested from any lab.