At least 4,443 cases of refusal vaccination refusal were recorded in Balochistan’s Quetta, Pishin and Killa Abdullah districts and the children who were documented will be administered polio vaccines, according to Coordinator of the Emergency Operation Cell Balochistan Dr Syed Saifur Rehman. Dr. Syed Saif Ur Rehman said that the list of parents refusing vaccine for their children has been thoroughly documented.He held a meeting to review the investigation of newly emerged polio case in Quetta which brought the total number of cases in Balochistan to five in this year of 2015. Out of the 4,443 refusal cases, around 1,762 cases have been reported in Zarghon, 1,219 in Quetta’s Chiltan Town, 719 in Pishin Tehsil, 133 in Karezat Teshil of Pishin district while 159 cases were recorded in Chaman Town which borders Afghanistan, and 153 cases in Tehsil Killah Abdullah of Killah Abdullah district, the official of Unicef ‘s Communication Network (COMNet) said. At the top of the chart, Balochistan is a story unto itself: Some quarter of a million children under the age of five have not been vaccinated against the crippling disease.The provincial government in Quetta, which claims to have a wider, deeper base among the people, must be as vigilant against the perils posed by polio as it is against any other existing danger. It is sad but not at all unexpected to find Fata and KP featuring prominently in this ignominious gallery. Punjab is an exception, but while it stands out, the current situation demands it does not become complacent. It must pursue the anti-polio drive vigorously.Figures showing the prevalence of polio in various areas and data on the number of children who have not been covered by the vaccination programme do lead to some routine analyses.Quite frequently, and with a lot of logic, it is pointed out that the situation varies from province to province and thus figures about the number of immunised might not be sufficient to project gains or lack of them in a particular area. It can also be argued that whereas these figures might have been gathered over a period of time, of late, the effort against polio has picked up speed, in the face of whatever threats there have been.
pk.shafaqna.com
