LANDI KOTAL: The anti-polio drive was suspended temporarily after several families in Landi Kotal tehsil of Khyber Agency refused to administer the vaccine to their children.

The three-day campaign was launched on Monday, however, a number of parents in Karamna, Gagra and Neek Khel localities of Landi Kotal refused to allow health teams to administer the anti-polio vaccine to their children to express their anguish over delay in resolution of their land and monetary disputes by the local political administration.

They accused the political administration of ignoring their repeated pleas for an early disposal of civil cases, pending before the assistant political agent for a long time.

However, the officials of Khasadar Force convinced the angry parents to administer anti-polio drops to their children after an assurance that their longstanding cases would be take up on priority basis.

The health officials said that apart from those isolated cases of refusal, which they said were based on demand, the first day of vaccination passed peacefully both in Landi Kotal and Jamrud tehsil.

The political administration deployed Khasadar and Levies personnel to provide security to all the 356 heath teams, constituted to administer anti-polio vaccine to about 129,338 children in Landi Kotal and Jamrud tehsils.

They said that health teams were also send to Jan Baz Kallay in Qambarkhel area of Bara and Bagh-Maidan area in Tirah valley. Other areas of Bara were excluded from the campaign as most of those were not yet cleared by the security forces.

Officials said that Jamrud tehsil was divided into three zones with special security arrangements made by the political administration.

They said that that Khasadar and Levies forces cordoned off the area before they administered vaccine to children.

They two khasadars were providing escort to every health team.

Officials said that transit health teams were also deputed at Torkham border and entry and exit point of Bara tehsil.

Published in Dawn, December 23rd, 2014