Six districts at high polio risk: WHO

Rachna Khaira

Tribune news Service

Jalandhar, September 18

A year after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared India a polio-free nation, the health body recently termed six districts of Punjab as high-risk zones for polio import due to the state’s proximity with Pakistan and Afghanistan, the only two polio-endemic nations left in the world. These districts are Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Moga, Patiala and Mohali.

Besides these, five districts — Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur, Fatehgarh Sahib, Faridkot and Bathinda – have been termed as medium-risk zones.

Around 11 surveillance teams from the WHO were in the state recently to identify around 333 cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) cases reported in the state since January 1 this year.

The AFP is a benchmark to check the presence of polio virus in children less than 15 years of age.

The testing of AFP patients alone can detect the presence of polio virus in an area. Also, a special polio round was conducted recently from September 13 to 15 in the state under the surveillance of WHO officials.

Dr Manjulata Sharma, WHO Polio Surveillance Officer in Jalandhar, said though the Union Government had made it mandatory to have a polio immunisation certificate for getting Indian visa, the threat still prevailed for the whole nation due to a significant population movement between the two countries mainly through Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir (J&K).

“While Pakistan has reported 28 confirmed cases, Afghanistan has reported the remaining six cases out of the total of 34 identified polio cases across the world since January 1. This requires a thorough surveillance in the state to prevent any further import of polio virus from the two polio-endemic nations,” said Dr Sharma. She said earlier too India had “exported” polio to countries such as Nepal, Tajikistan and Angola, before the launch of the National Polio Eradication Programme in 1998.

Around four polio cases were last reported in Punjab in 2009. Two were from Ludhiana and one each from Jalandhar and Mohali. The state reported the maximum polio cases (8) in 2006 when one case was reported each from Patiala, Moga, Gurdaspur, Faridkot, Bathinda, Mohali and two were reported from Hoshiarpur.

India had achieved a major milestone in 2012 with the World Health Organisation striking it off the list of polio-endemic countries on February 25, 2012, after it completed one year without any case of polio.

No polio case has been reported in the country after a two-year-old girl was paralysed by polio in Howrah district of West Bengal on January 13, 2011.

Cities with highest acute flaccid paralysis cases in state (2015)

Ludhiana: 48  |  Mohali: 31  |  Ropar: 23

(Acute flaccid paralysis  is a benchmark to check the presence of polio virus in children less than 15 years of age. The testing of AFP patients alone can detect the presence of polio virus in an area.)