Capital becomes polio-free, 180,000 children vaccinated
By Hina Kiyani

ISLAMABAD—With immunization of 180,000 children against polio, the Capital has become polio-free zone, head of Directorate of Health Service (DHS), Capital Development Authority (CDA) Senior Director Dr Saeed told here Monday.
“Under the 4th national polio immunization campaign, as many as 180,000 children were immunized in the federal capital, and now Islamabad has become polio-free”, he said.
“Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has awarded a ‘polio-free flag’ to the Directorate for accomplishing the great task,” he said.
Dr. Saeed said 500 mobile teams of DHS in collaboration withIslamabad Capital Territory (ICT) and Plan International, a non-governmental organization, are being mobilised house-to-house throughout the Federal Capital, to vaccinate targeted population.
He said the Directorate has also set up 100 fix-points and 39transit-points including public transport stops, across the federal capital, where children under age of five, are being vaccinatedagainst the disease.
He said that the campaign was extended for two-day in thecapital to ensure that all the children were administered polio
drops.
“Pakistan can be the next country in the world to eradicate polio and concerted efforts are being made in this regard.”
He said “The number of children affected by polio has been reduced from thousands of cases, when we launched this campaign, down to 17 cases todate this year country-wide and zero cases here in the federal capital.”