MIRPUR (AJK): In Mirpur, AJK, a total of 72422 children of under 05 years of age would be administered polio vaccine and vitamin ‘A’ drops during the 5-day long nation-wide anti-polio campaign which commenced here on Monday.
“According to the plan, the district has been divided into six zones with one supervisor for each zone to implement the drive. One ward in charge will supervise the campaign in each union council of the district”, the District Health Officer Dr. Fida Hussain disclosed while talking to reporters in his office on Monday after beginning the national drive against polio which will continue till May 27.
Mirpur Deputy Commissioner Ch. Amjad Iqbal inaugurated the campaign on Saturday. The inauguration ceremony was held at the DHO office where the DHO administered the polio vaccine besides the vitamin ‘A’ drops to the children of under 05 years of age.
The DHO said that medical officers would supervise the campaign in all 28 union councils besides the ward in-charges deputed to supervise the drive in 88 other union councils in the district of over seven lacs UK-based Kashmiri expatriates.
Dr. Fida said that a total of 400 mobile teams had been constituted and 40 fixed centers had been set up in the district to immunize the children with the anti-polio vaccine. Besides, 14 transit points had also been carved out in various parts of Mirpur district to inject traveling children with anti-polio vaccine and to administer vitamin ‘A’ drops during the campaign.
Deputy Commissioner Ch. Amjad Iqbal advised the parents to get their children protected from the disease of polio by fully cooperating with the mobile medical teams and those deputed at transit points and fixed centers.
The DC emphasized that there was earnest need of accountability and commitment to this global cause for achieving the target of complete eradication of this fatal disease. It was officially stated that no case of any child with polio had been reported in Azad Jammu Kashmir including Mirpur since the year of 2000.