ISLAMABAD: Starting Monday, a week-long anti-polio campaign will take place across various districts of all four provinces in the country as part of the National Immunisation Programme.
The campaign aims to immunise over two million children under the age of 5 to boost their immunity against polio. It will run from May 15 to May 19 in most districts, while in Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad, it will continue for seven days.
A total of 12 districts of Punjab, including Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Bhakkar, Dera Ghazi Khan, Layyah, Mianwali, Multan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur, Rahim Yar Khan, and Sheikhupura have been made part of the campaign.
To ensure that all children are reached, mobile teams have been formed, which will visit all areas, including remote and far-flung areas, flood-affected areas, and Afghan refugee camps in Islamabad and other districts.
The district health officer of Punjab, while speaking to a cable-news station, urged religious scholars, NGOs, and the local community to participate actively in making the campaign successful.
The private schools have also been requested to cooperate with the district administration in implementing the polio eradication program.
It is crucial for the government to strengthen polio surveillance systems and ensure high vaccination coverage to eradicate the disease from the country. The immunisation campaign has finalised all arrangements to save children from the crippling disease.
