Polio case surfaces in Khyber Pakhtunkhaw

Lakki Marwat: The first case of polio virus of this year surfaced in Khyber Pakhtunkhaw. The National Institute of Health declared 16 months old Anum positive for the polio virus. Emergency Operation Center (EOC) of Khyber Pakhtukhaw said a total of five polio cases were reported from the province in the last year; one case each from Laki Marwat and Mardan districts, two cases from tribal district of Bajur and one from tribal district Khyber. The local officials running polio campaign in Khyber Pakhtunkhaw claimed that the victim child was vaccinated more than seven times against the virus. Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus lauded the efforts of Pakistan for polio eradication during his visit to the country on January 6. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that Pakistan would soon become a polio free state though joint efforts and expressed satisfaction over the measures and reforms taken by the government. Briefing the WHO chief on anti-polio drive, Federal Minister Amir Mehmod Kyani said the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) government is committed to eliminate polio from the country.