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Pakistan confirmed another polio case on Tuesday, bringing the total number of cases in 2024 to 65, according to a report by ARY News.
The National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC) for polio eradication revealed that the latest case involves a one-and-a-half-year-old child from the Kila Abdullah area in Chaman district, Balochistan. This marks the seventh polio case reported from Kila Abdullah, with Balochistan province accounting for 27 cases overall this year. According to the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) for Polio Eradication, Pakistan reported the 64th polio case in Jacobabad, Sindh, ARY News reported. Earlier on December 20, six individuals were arrested and charged following an alleged attack on a polio vaccination team and their police escorts by residents in Karachi's Korangi area, Dawn reported. The drive aimed to vaccinate 10.6 million children under five, comes after 64 polio cases have been reported in Pakistan this year, with 18 of them from Sindh. The polio team, accompanied by police officers, was targeting children in the Korangi-2, Sector-20 area as part of their efforts. According to a statement from the Korangi senior superintendent of police (SSP), the polio workers and their security personnel were attacked by a tribal family as they arrived at their doorstep. The statement further revealed that when the situation escalated, the Korangi deputy superintendent of police (DSP), accompanied by female police officers and Rangers, arrived at the scene, Dawn reported. The family reportedly responded aggressively, throwing stones at the police, which prompted the authorities to take control of the situation. As a result, four women and two men were arrested, and a case was registered against them following government instructions. The incident occurred in an informal settlement, highlighting ongoing challenges in the fight against polio in Pakistan, one of the last two countries alongside Afghanistan where the disease remains endemic. Despite global vaccination efforts, polio continues to affect children under five, sometimes resulting in lifelong paralysis. The attack took place during a week-long polio immunisation drive launched by the Sindh government last week. (ANI)
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