QUETTA: A three-day polio eradication campaign was launched amid tight security on Monday in seven districts of Balochistan.

Over 800,000 children below five years of age will be administered polio vaccine drops in the districts, including Zhob, Qila Abdullah and Pishin along the border.

However, the campaign for Quetta was again postponed because of security concerns and protest by vaccinators and doctors over non-payment of wages.

“The anti-polio campaign could not be launched on Monday in Quetta district because of inadequate security arrangements and non-payment of wages and allowances to the vaccinators and other staff for the past four rounds of vaccination,” a health department official said.

Also read: Another polio case confirmed in Balochistan

He said the campaign would soon be launched in the provincial capital after completing arrangements to provide maximum security to health workers and vaccinators.

“It is very important to launch the campaign during the low transmission season for eradicating poliovirus,” the Balochistan Emergency Operation Centre for Polio’s Coordinator Dr Syed Saifur Rehman said.

According to the centre, the campaign was launched Zhob, Qila Abdullah, Jaffarabad, Nasirabad, Hub, Pishin and Sherani.

The overall target was to vaccinate 1.2 million children, about 400,000 among them in Quetta.

The campaign could also not begin in six union councils of Zhob because of an operation in the area by security forces.

“The vaccination campaign will begin in the six union councils on Tuesday,” Dr Rehman said.

“It is unfortunate that the campaign could not be launched in Quetta which includes high-risk areas. We will ensure that it begins soon and the issued of payments and shortage of security personnel have been taken up with the authorities concerned,” he said.

He said it was a national cause and everyone should contribute in eradicating from Balochistan the disease that had crippled thousands of children across the country. The campaign will continue till Wednesday.

Three of the 23 polio cases confirmed during the past five months have been reported from Balochistan. The last was confirmed in Quetta.

Environmental samples from Qila Abdullah have also proved positive for the virus.

Meanwhile, the Doctors Action Committee in a late-night development ended their protest and announced that they would take part in the ongoing campaign after successful negotiations with top officials of the health department.

“We will fully participate in the anti-polio campaign in Quetta district and other areas from May 20,” Dr Ameer Bakhsh Zehri said.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play