Refusal will be targeted first, no compromise on polio: ADC Central Shujaat Hussain

KARACHI: The ongoing polio drive will eliminate refusal first, Additional Deputy Commissioner of District Central Syed Shujaat Hussain said in a meeting held to discuss the polio campaign in his office.

The four-day anti-polio drive kicked off in Sindh on Monday and aims to vaccinate more than 2 million children in Karachi and 6 million from different districts of Sindh.

More than 10,000 refusal cases have emerged so far in 2016. Refusals have been reduced to 4,000 and the campaign aims to bring the count to zero, Shujaat Hussain added.

During the second day of the polio drive on Tuesday, more than 3,500 polio volunteer teams and 5,000 police personnel were deployed to vaccinate more than 2 million children in Karachi.

District Central is one of the most densely populated areas of Karachi and is home to several different communities including Pashtun and others.

Officials at the Emergency Polio Cell Sindh said that the new strategy of deploying mobile teams and revalidating data house-to-house would eventually reduce the number of refusal cases.

When asked about private schools’ cooperation with polio volunteers, a spokesman from the Health Department said that the message is clear: not a single refusal will be tolerated against the polio drive. If any school refuses to cooperate with the polio volunteers in vaccinating the children, a legal notice would be served to the concerned school administration.

So far four polio cases were reported this year in Sindh, including one from Karachi.

Health experts urge parents to vaccinate their children in every campaign.