LAKKI MARWAT: The district health department with the help of other stakeholders will devise a plan to resolve problems faced by anti-polio teams in the field and make polio eradication committees at union council level fully functional to eradicate the crippling disease from the district.

This was decided by the district polio eradication committee during a meeting here on Wednesday.

Additional deputy commissioner Ihsanullah Khan chaired the meeting, where DHO Dr Nek Nawaz Khan, SDPO Bashar Khan Wazir, district khateeb Maulana Abdul Wahab and officials of line departments were in attendance.

The DHO briefed participants about the preparations of the health department for the upcoming anti-polio campaign.

He said over 400 anti-polio teams had been constituted to immunise over 150,000 children under the age of five years.

The DHO said the issues raised in the meetings of union council polio eradication committees would be resolved on priority basis before the start of campaign.

The additional deputy commissioner asked the health authorities to make arrangements for administering oral polio vaccine to children entering the district with parents from adjacent tribal areas.

He said social mobilisers and union council campaign support persons should ensure coverage of vaccination refusal cases at all costs.

Mr Ihsanullah expressed concern over high incidence of vaccination refusal cases and asked health officials to begin concerted efforts to reduce such cases in the district.

23 OUTLAWS ARRESTED: Local police on Wednesday said they had eliminated hideouts of wanted criminals and arrested 23 people, including five proclaimed offenders, during a search and strike operation in different parts of the district.

An official said the operation led by the DPO was simultaneously launched in the border villages of Tajori town and in far-off rural localities of Kurram Par area.

He said the law-enforcement agencies demolished the houses of two hardened criminals, including Rafiullah and Hukkum Khan, in Wanda Aurangzeb and Abbasa villages.

“Besides, three suspects were also held along with a Kalakov rifle, a repeater, a pistol and a huge cache of ammunitions from the area,” he said.

The official said police also captured three drug traffickers in the border village of Tajori town and seized one kilogramme heroin, one kilogramme opium and 600 grammes hashish.

He said the cops assisted by the commandos of the elite force and anti-terrorism squad arrested five proclaimed offenders and 12 suspects during the operation.

The official said the offenders were wanted by police for murder, murder attempts and other heinous crimes.