ISLAMABAD: Three more cases have been confirmed by the Polio Virology Laboratory at the National Institute of Health, raising this year’s count to 16.

A Ministry of National Health Services official said the new cases were reported from Loralai in Balochistan, Dadu in Sindh and Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He said the detection was surprising because during winter poliovirus became less active because of low temperature.

In 2015, seven cases have been reported from KP, five from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and two each from Sindh and Balochistan.

On March 4, the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced that international travel restriction for Pakistani nationals had been extended for another three months because the country had failed to stop “exporting” poliovirus.

On May 5 last year, WHO announced that it was mandatory for Pakistanis to get at least one dose of vaccine administered before travelling abroad. The government was asked to issue such certificates to travellers.

As Pakistan has failed to curb poliovirus, it was decided to extend the restriction for another three months.

Our staff correspondent in Quetta adds: The second child crippled by poliovirus in Balochistan this year is 12-month-old Naimatullah, son of Doulat Khan. The family lives in a village in Nasarabad union council of Dukki tehsil in Loralai district.

A Unicef official recalled that the first case this year was reported from Daman Ashezai union council of Qila Abdullah district.

Officials at the Emergency Operation Centre said the two children missed the vaccination drops each time a health team visited their villages.

Published in Dawn March 8th , 2015

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