PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ameer Haider Khan Hoti
has said that as many as seven cases of polio have been reported in the
province so far during the current year, out of which five are being
attributed to the refusal of administering anti-polio vaccines to the
children.
The general masses, government functionaries,
ulema
and parents, he said, are therefore required to realize their moral,
religious as well as national responsibilities and take active part in
the crusade against polio so as to make the homeland free from this
paralyzing disease.
This he said while addressing the launching
ceremony of the September Sub-National Immunization Days Campaign
(SNIDs) at Nowshera on Thursday.
During the campaign, which
will last from September 19 to September 22 to provide anti-polio
coverage in 11 districts completely and 123 high risk union council of
the remaining 14 districts of the province, as many as 3.222 million
children below the age of five years will be administrated anti-polio
vaccines. Similarly, 1.6 million children of FATA and FRs will also be
provided anti-polio coverage during the special campaign and all
necessary arrangements have already been made in this regard.
Ameer
Haider Khan Hoti said that the eradication of polio was a challenge for
the whole nation and for achieving that end they all had to come out
from their offices and homes in the field by shunning the conventional
practice of inaugurating the anti-polio campaigns and had to ensure the
administration of anti-polio vaccines to every child ageing below five.
The participation of Governor, Provincial Ministers,
parliamentarians and other responsible high government officers in the
ceremony, he said, testify the fact that the government is giving top
priority to this national cause and wants to eradicate the crippling
disease through joint efforts for good. “We will be satisfied only when
this disease is completely eradicated not only from the province but
also from the whole country and for this we will have to focus and work
mainly at the union council level” observed the CM.
The Chief
Minister informed that as compared to the 48 cases of the previous
year, as many as 84 polio cases had been reported during the ongoing
year and seven out of them belonged to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Online
