SLAMABAD: Amid the ongoing vaccination drive across the country against poliovirus, a new polio case was confirmed from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday.

The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health confirmed the poliovirus case from Torghar district of KP. It was this year’s second case from the province and seventh case from across Pakistan.

An official of polio programme said, “The second nationwide polio campaign of the year is currently in progress in the country from April 21 to 27, aiming to vaccinate 45.4 million children under the age of five across the country. This will be followed by another nationwide campaign from May 26 to June 1.

“District Torghar is included in both these vaccination campaigns, along with all other districts of the country.”

Official says Torghar district will be covered in ongoing and next vaccination drive

The official appealed to parents to ensure their children aged five years and less must receive repeated doses of the polio vaccine to protect them from the crippling disease.

“The ongoing polio campaign is a critical opportunity to safeguard children against this viral disease,” he said.

Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by the virus that invades the nervous system, and can cause paralysis or even death.

While there is no cure for polio, vaccination is the most effective way to protect children from this crippling disease. Each time a child under the age of five is vaccinated, their protection against the virus is increased. Repeated immunisations have protected millions of children from polio, allowing almost all countries in the world to become polio free.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only countries which are reporting polio cases.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2025