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Chief Minister of Punjab province in Pakistan, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, called for a "practical and sustainable plan" to eradicate the polio virus which continues to wreak havoc in the country, according to a report by ARY News.
To eradicate polio from the province, Maryam Nawaz has directed authorities to launch vaccination campaigns at all entry points in Punjab. During a meeting chaired by Maryam on the elimination of polio, a decision was taken to track and register mobile and migrant populations in Punjab. The CM directed that accurate data on missing children be compiled during the vaccination campaign, ARY News reported. Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, Health Ministers Khawaja Salman Rafique, Khawaja Imran Nazir, Parliamentary Secretary Azma Kardar, Sania Ashiq, Dr. Adnan Khan, Chief Secretary, Secretaries, and other relevant officials attended the meeting. The meeting also reviewed micro-plans and proposals to boost the vaccination campaign's effectiveness, aiming to make Punjab completely polio-free. CM Maryam Sharif also made a commitment to eradicate polio from Punjab, vowing to make the province completely 'polio-free'. She said that she is personally monitoring the vaccination campaign and underscored that the polio virus can only be eradicated through vigorous and complete public support, according to ARY News. She further directed the concerned authorities to maintain a cold chain according to standard operating procedures (SOPs) during the vaccination campaign. Notably, a day before, two new polio cases were reported from the Sanghar and Mirpur Khas districts of Sindh province of Pakistan, taking the toll up to 39 this year in the country, ARY News reported on Saturday, citing its sources. Pakistan's National Reference Lab of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) confirmed these cases. On Friday, three new polio cases were reported in Balochistan, after which the number of cases reached 20 in the province this year. The Health Department of Balochistan confirmed the three new polio cases from the districts of Chaman, Pishin, and Nushki area of Balochistan. The affected children include a nine-month-old from Chaman, an 18-month-old from Pishin, and a five-year-old from Noshki, all of whom have been left disabled due to the disease, according to health department sources. This recent surge has brought the nationwide total of polio cases in Pakistan to 39 in 2024, raising concerns over the ongoing struggle to eradicate polio from the country. (ANI)
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