Pakistan today launched a three- day polio immunisation drive in northwestern Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa province expected to administer polio drops to over 30 lakh children in 13 districts, officials said.
Of the total 38 polio cases reported in the country, the province has registered 15 polio cases in 2015 so far while another 11 cases have emerged in the neighbouring tribal region which borders Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
As many as 3,287,429 children under the age of five years will be administered polio drops in 13 districts of the province, an official said.
He added that 8,444 mobile, 863 fixed, 737 transit and 67 roaming teams are taking part in the drive which will cover Peshawar, Charsadda, Mardan, Nowshera, Swat, Kohat, Bannu, Hangu, Karak, Dera Ismail Khan, Lakki Marwat, Tank, and Torghar districts.
Militant groups often attack polio teams as they see vaccination campaigns a cover for espionage. There are also long-running rumours about polio drops causing infertility.
Provincial capital Peshawar is considered as hub of poliovirus and all efforts to eliminate the virus have failed so far.
Pakistan faced WHO's travel restriction last year and its efforts to end polio have not been completely successful despite notable reduction in the number of polio cases in the country.
In March, the world body announced that international travel restriction had been extended for another three months because the country had failed to stop exporting poliovirus.
Pakistan is one of only three countries where polio remains endemic and last year witnessed 306 cases of the highly infectious, crippling disease which is a 14-year record.
