3-day polio immunisation drive to be organised across Malerkotla

Mahesh Sharma

Malerkotla, February 29

The Malerkotla District Health Department claimed to have made all preparations for implementing a three-day day intensified pulse polio immunisation drive commencing on Sunday.

Visitors from afghanistan and pakistan can spread polio

Though our country is a polio-free nation, we have to take extra care in protecting our children against wild polio virus (WPV1) and vaccine derived polio virus (cVDPV) as our immediate neighbours Pakistan and Afghanistan still have cases of poliomyelitis, and can serve as reservoir of the virus — Amjad, Past district governor, Rotary Club

Extra emphasis is required in implementation of polio pulse immunisation here as the district frequently receives people from Pakistan and Afghanistan, which are the only two reservoirs of the virus in the world.

Appreciating the concern of the administration, past district governor and chief advisor of the Rotary International District 3090, Amjad said office-bearers and activists of various units of the organisation had been advised to extend support to the administration in this endeavour.

“Though our country is a polio-free nation, we have to take extra care in protecting our children against wild polio virus (WPV1) and vaccine derived polio virus (cVDPV) as our immediate neighbours Pakistan and Afghanistan still have cases of poliomyelitis, and can serve as reservoir of the virus,” said Amjad. He said that endemic transmission of the WPV was continuing in border areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan, which, if not stopped could proliferate the virus to uncontrollable situations in the world within 10 years. He appreciated that the Global Polio Eradication Initiative launched by the WHO, with Rotary as major partner, has prevented around 20 million cases of paralysis in children since 1988.

Civil Surgeon Dr Chetna claimed that extra measures had been taken to ensure that all the identified forty thousand children are administered vaccine drops during the 3-day micro immunisation plan. “Having studied the demography of the district, we have constituted separate teams for 202 booths and 10 mobile teams to visit factories, brick kilns, roadside camps of labourers and other public places,” said Dr Chetna adding that 7 transit teams will visit railway stations, bus stops and other transit points in the district.

The Civil Surgeon added that 404 teams will undertake a door-to-door vaccination drive on Monday and Tuesday to administer vaccination to those who could not visit booths on Sunday. As many as 842 government personnel from different departments have been deployed on the mission under supervision of 31 coordinators, claimed Dr Chetna.