QUETTA: A three-day anti-polio campaign began in five districts of Balochistan on Monday.

Officials in the Health Department said medical teams had reached five districts of the province, including Quetta, Pishin, Qila Abdullah, Zhob and Sherani and started administering immunisation drops to children below the age of five.

“About 761,000 children below age five will be administered anti-polio vaccine during the three-day drive,” they said, adding that total 1794 teams were formed who were administering anti-polio drops to the children in 228 health centres and 78 transit places.

They added that special arrangements had been made for the security of the teams.

Polio persists in Pakistan with militant groups seeing vaccination campaigns as a cover for espionage.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Pakistan recorded 91 cases of polio last year, up from 58 in 2012.

WHO has warned that Peshawar is the world's “largest reservoir” of polio.

Pakistan's struggle to defeat polio stands in stark contrast to its neighbour and great rival India, which recently celebrated three years since its last polio case.

Afghanistan and Nigeria are the other countries where the disease remains.