LAHORE, Sept 5: The Punjab health department has, after failure to administer anti-polio vaccine to 13.9 million target children under five years of age, decided to continue the immunization drive.

Last year Pakistan could not fulfil its international commitment to eradicate polio because incidence of wild virus of the disease were recorded in various places. Over 60 cases were reported in Dera Ghazi Khan division.

The international donor agencies had extended the deadline for the eradication of polio by the end of 2002.

Punjab health secretary Hasan Waseem Afzal had on Sept 2 said that 32 confirmed polio cases were reported so far from all over the country, including nine from the Punjab, during the ongoing calendar year.

According to the secretary, three polio cases had been reported from Dera Ghazi Khan while one case each from Rahim Yar Khan, Rajanpur, Khanewal, Sahiwal, Gujranwala and Okara districts.

The much publicised three-day National Immunization Days (NIDs) concluded on Thursday and the health department monitoring teams, constituted to supervise the vaccination drive, reported to the high-ups that ‘different pockets’ in the province have yet to be covered.

Sources said the vaccination coverage remained low at different places, specially the Faisalabad and Jhang outskirts.

Officials concerned claimed that the coverage remained very good where children had volunteered to work for the vaccination campaign. The health department had paid Rs80 per volunteer child per day.

The health department had this year constituted 32,463 vaccination teams to administer anti-polio vaccine to 13.9 million target children under five years of age.

In order to supervise the vaccination campaign, 3,435 area in charge teams were constituted besides 630 zonal supervisors.