CHITRAL: Ninety-eight per cent of the targeted population in the Upper Chitral district has been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, a senior official claimed on Wednesday.

Upper Chitral district health officer Dr Rahmat Aman told Dawn that out of the targeted population of 94,000, 90,000 people had got the second jab.

He said maximum people above 18 years of age had been inoculated in the far-flung Baroghil valley with the support of Aga Khan Health Service, Pakistan, which had dispatched special teams to the valley for the purpose.

Dr Aman said the outreach teams were being sent to the villages of Mulkow, Torkhow and some villages in Mastuj to inoculate the aged people and women who could not get to the respective vaccination centres.

He said positivity rate abruptly jumped in Upper Chitral to 13.85 per cent from 1.98 per cent before Eidul Azha.

He said government girls high school, Awi, had been closed due to high rate of infection among students and staff, while smart lockdown had been imposed in six villages, including Sonoghur, Parwak, Sarghuz, Chinar, Lomali Kosht and Gohkir.

Meanwhile, positivity rate in Lower Chitral also increased to 10 per cent on Wednesday from below two per cent before Eidul Azha.

Lower Chitral district coordinator, EPI, Dr Farman Nizar said the positivity rate jumped as residents of Chitral returned from other districts of the country on the occasion of Eid.

Regarding the vaccination campaign against Covid-19 in the district, he said out of targeted population of 156,000, 116,000 people had been given the mandatory two doses of vaccine.

He said no refusal case against vaccination was reported from any village of both Upper and Lower Chitral districts.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2021