Ashrafuddin Pirzada
PESHAWAR: On August 4, 2024, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti met with Ayesha Raza Farooq, the Prime Minister’s focal person for polio eradication, at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat in Quetta.
The meeting, which also included provincial ministers Sardar Faisal Jamali and Ali Madad Jatk, Secretary of Health Muhammad Saleh Baloch, National Polio Coordinator Captain (Retd) Muhammad Anwar-ul-Haq, Commissioner Quetta Division Hamza Shafqat, and Emergency Operation Center Coordinator Inam Khan Mandokhel, focused on the province’s efforts to combat polio.
During the meeting, Ayesha Raza Farooq expressed concern over the recent polio cases reported in Balochistan. To address this issue, a special anti-polio campaign will be launched over the next three months, starting in September 2024 and continuing through November 2024.
Chief Minister Bugti assured that the government would provide full administrative support to the anti-polio teams and warned against any disruptions to the polio program. He directed the Secretary of Health to ensure no lapses in the health department’s polio and vaccination programs and emphasized the importance of running a high-quality campaign. Bugti also highlighted the need for a continuous Extended Program of Immunization (EPI) in high-risk districts and stressed the importance of raising public awareness through religious leaders, media, and civil society to ensure the complete eradication of the disease.
