In Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), the nation-wide 04-day polio eradication drive on Tuesday continued successfully for the 2nd consecutive day.  The campaign will continue till December 18 without any break.  At least 7.12 lakh children up to five years of age, were targeted to be administered polio vaccine during the campaign launched across AJK on Monday, the State Health Services Authorities said. 

The drive was launched across AJK by the State Health Services Department with the coordination of the World Health Organization (WHO), the state health authorities said talking to APP while unveiling the salient features of the immunization campaign against polio.  They underlined that no case of polio disease had been emerged any where in the liberated since last 25 years. 

And in lake district of Mirpur, District Health Officer, Dr. Fida Hussain said that since Mirpur district had been comprising the total population of 4,38,319 persons which included over 76 thousand children under five years of age would be immunized with polio vaccine and vitamin ‘A’ drops during door to door visit by mobile para medical teams besides at 14 transit points and fixed centers across the district. 

The district, he said, had been remarked into four zones with the induction of one supervisor in each zone to implement the drive.  "One ward In-charge will supervise the campaign in the concerned specified area falling in each Union Council in the district.", he said adding that a total of 84 Union Councils / Ward In-charges would look after the campaign in all union councils in the district. 

Elaborating the district-wise anti-polio drive, Dr. Fida Hussain further said that a total of 400 mobile teams of paramedical staff involving over 900 para-medical workers had been constituted and 41 fixed centers had been set up in the district to immunize the children with the polio vaccine.  “The mobile teams will visit door to door to feed the children with the polio vaccine during the campaign", he said.

At least six thousand vials of the anti-polio vaccine had been managed for the vaccination during the campaign, he added.  The DHO advised the parents to cooperate the visiting mobile paramedic teams to make the national anti-polio campaign complete success.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)