KARACHI, Nov 25: Detection of 30th polio victim has spurred the Sindh government to suspend the head of district health administration Jacobabad.

Coincidently, the detection of polio virus in a two-year-old girl was reported on Thursday when Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani was chairing a meeting with the Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah on 'polio eradication in Pakistan' in Islamabad. A source in the National Institute of Health confirmed polio incidence.

On the other hand, the Sindh chief minister had in October approved an accountability system for officials failing to achieve the desired results and thus ordered the Health Secretary to take necessary action over the detection of 30th polio case this year.

He had even warned the then DCO now re-designated as deputy commissioner of getting a show-cause notice, if ever a case was reported.

Pathological report revealed Gulnissa d/o Allah Bux resident of Dasti Union Council of Jacobabad taluka as the new victim. Reportedly, she had received three routine immunization polio vaccines and 10 supplementary oral doses during different polio campaigns. However, the onset of disease was reported on October 9.

This is the 13th girl out of the 30 reported cases in Sindh. The number of polio cases reported from Karachi was eight, Thatta seven, Badin three, two each from Sanghar, Tando Mohammad Khan and Qambar, and one each from Tando Allahyar, Jamshoro, Hyderabad, Umerkot, Kashmore and Jacobabad.

However, 160 cases were reported this year from all over the country. Balochistan topped the list with 63 detections, Fata 48, Sindh 30, KPK 14, Punjab 4, and Gilgit-Baltistan one.

Health officials awe the figure to heave up in next four to six weeks because of crucial season for intensified transmission of poliovirus and infection among children.

The emergence of polo case was reported despite the suspension of town health officials of Sadder, Baldia and Site areas in Karachi some four months back over their unsatisfactory performance during the campaign.

Jacobabad is in high risk districts even though it reportedly covered 95 to 99 per cent children from May to October this year through finger-marking.

Sindh Health Secretary Syed Hashim Raza Zaidi when contacted said a summary for the suspension of Jacobabad's EDO-Health, Dr Deedar Jamali was forwarded to competent authorities on Friday.

The department in accordance to the government's previous decisions and prime minister's latest directives had recommended suspension of Dr Jamali, he added.

“I along with the deputy commissioner would start visiting union councils from where new polio cases were reported or had been included in the high risk areas,” he said.

Health department was holding workshops for deputy commissioners across the province to sensitize them on polio and its eradication measures and their role in implementing the strategies, he said, with efforts underway to improve immunization campaigns.