Peshawar [Pakistan], August 29 (ANI): The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government on Thursday launched an anti-polio drive aimed at immunising 5.7 million children in the province amid persistent security threats, Dawn reported.

Pakistan remains one of the last two countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan, where polio is still endemic.

According to Dawn, vaccinators going door-to-door in KP and Balochistan are frequently targeted by militants. In 2024 alone, 20 people were killed and 53 were injured during anti-polio campaigns in the province.

On August 26, two new cases were reported in southern KP, taking the province's total polio cases this year to 15, while the nationwide tally stands at 23.

The campaign was formally launched at the Peshawar Police Services Hospital. Speaking to the media, KP Adviser on Health Ehtesham Ali said, 'We have developed a more organised and strategic approach this time, especially in areas where cases have recently been reported.' He noted that of the 15 cases in KP, 13 were from the south of the province.

Detailing the plan, Ali said the campaign would run in two phases. The first, beginning September 1, will last four days and cover Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera, Charsadda and 16 other districts, with partial coverage in three more. The second phase, scheduled from September 15, will run for three days in Bannu, Bajaur and seven districts of the Dera Ismail Khan division.

According to data shared by the KP health department, the seven-day campaign will engage 27,000 polio teams and deploy 40,000 security personnel for their protection. 'While the world has largely eradicated polio, we are still facing challenges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,' Ali said. 'Committees have been formed to engage and convince reluctant parents, and efforts are underway to address local resistance.'

Ali added, 'Insecurity in certain districts has made it difficult to consistently run successful campaigns,' noting that the government had relaunched a drive in South Waziristan after two years. He emphasised that the merged districts and southern KP remain the most resistant regions for polio teams.

Echoing his concerns, KP Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah said, 'Our teams are facing real challenges, but the government and the Pakistan Army are actively helping to maintain law and order in these sensitive areas.' He stressed the importance of expanding regular immunisation, stating, 'Strengthening overall healthcare services is essential to controlling not just polio, but other preventable diseases as well.'

'When one child contracts polio, the entire family suffers -- both emotionally and economically,' Shah remarked, as quoted by Dawn.

Polio is an incurable, highly infectious disease that can cause lifelong paralysis. The oral polio vaccine (OPV), given in repeated doses to every child under five, remains the only effective protection, along with the timely completion of all essential immunisations. (ANI)