LAHORE: Highlighting encouraging gains in the fight against polio, Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) Coordinator and Head of the Punjab Polio Eradication Programme Adeel Tasawur has said that a clear decline in poliovirus circulation has been observed across Punjab.

He made these remarks while chairing a review meeting of Punjab’s four polio high-risk districts on Thursday. The meeting was attended by senior health officials from Lahore, Rawalpindi, Rajanpur and Dera Ghazi Khan, and focused on assessing risk trends, operational performance and preparedness for upcoming polio campaigns.

During the meeting, Mr Tasawur credited district teams for the reduction in positive environmental samples, calling it evidence of improved campaign quality and effective field supervision. At the same time, he cautioned that the poliovirus was still present in the environment, urging continued vigilance, particularly in Rawalpindi, Lahore and south Punjab.

He stressed that while progress had been made, key performance indicators of polio campaigns needed further strengthening, especially the quality of frontline worker training, microplanning for mobile and transient populations, and monitoring in remote and hard-to-reach areas.

He also emphasised the importance of openly reporting and addressing operational challenges, advising districts against concealing issues faced during campaigns.

“Any manipulation of polio data will not be tolerated,” he warned.

Published in Dawn, January 9th, 2026