RAWALPINDI: Punjab Emergency Operation Centre Coordinator and head of the polio programme Khizer Afzaal Chaudhry has asked all districts to ensure provision of adequate security to anti-polio teams in the upcoming campaign starting on May 15.

He was addressing a meeting held to review the status of preparedness for the campaign. District health management teams from 12 districts, including the chief executive officers, district health officers and partner staff, participated in the meeting via video link.

The coordinator stressed on wrapping up the orientation of polio teams on time.

“I urge the district health administrations to wrap up team training on time. It also needs to ensure that training quality is up to the mark,” he said.

On the risk of virus importation from endemic zones, he asked the districts make adequate arrangements of vaccination of children at the transit points. He also urged them to make sure that all transitory and mobile populations who had entered Punjab to earn livelihoods are integrated into the micro-plans.

“Although Punjab is free of poliovirus, it is at the risk of imported virus recirculation. Therefore, the districts need to map and vaccinate every child belonging to the high-risk mobile populations,” he added.

He urged the Rajanpur district to reach out to the deputy commissioner to ensure provision of security to polio teams. “On the security situation in the riverine areas of Rojhan in the wake of police action against robbers, guidance should be taken from the deputy commissioner. A report should be submitted to the EOC before the campaign,” he observed.

He stressed that not a single child should be deprived of polio vaccine as this could give way to the virus to spread.

It may be noted that 12 districts of Punjab have been made part of the campaign. These are: Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Bhakkar, DG Khan, Layyah, Mianwali, Multan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur, Rahim Yar Khan and Sheikhupura.

In Lahore, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad, the campaign will continue for seven days while in other districts it will last for five days.

Over 84,000 polio workers will participate in the drive to immunise 10.85 million children under the age of five.

Punjab has been free of polio cases since October 2020. The province’s last environmental samples that tested positive in January were linked to Afghanistan and southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Therefore, the provincial government is taking concrete steps to improve quality of campaigns and coverage of high-risk mobile populations at transit points.

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2023