LAHORE - Punjab health department has chalked out special plans to prevent entry of polio virus into the province in the next four months in anticipation of mass movement to and from the province and reemergence of polio virus in Kambar and Bannu.

Sources in the health department have confirmed that special teams are being set up to deal with the influx in Ramazan, summer holidays and Eid. They further said that Punjab will push for inclusion of more districts in sub national campaign starting from May 7.

“The districts including Bhakkar, Layyah and Mianwali, which fall in priority-4, may be added in the upcoming polio campaign. They are in addition to eight high risk districts, falling in priority 2 and 3, including Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan, RY Khan, DG Khan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur and Sheikhupura which are part of the sub-national campaign’, the sources disclosed.  Sources disclosed that in the next four months from May to August, except June, above mentioned priority-2 and priority-3 districts will conduct polio campaigns.

“The health department is alive to the risks and taking measures in the wake of polio virus circulation reported from Sindh and KP”, sources in the health department confided to this scribe.

“Since 2016, Bannu has reported wild polio virus in environment for the first time. The sequencing result indicates an orphan virus and from the same lineage which was isolated in DG Khan last February 2018. The isolation of R4B1C1 is significant in the context of the current widespread and extended circulation of R4B1C1 beyond the Saraiki area belt”, the source said.  Previously it affected a child in Tank in January 2015 and continued to circulate in the environment in south Punjab from December 2016 to February 2018.

The same lineage was isolated in Kambar and Rawalpindi in 2017.

During same year in 2017, after 31 months R4B1C1 was isolated again in a child in Lakki Marwat in August 2017 and now isolated in the environment in Bannu.

Interestingly the R4B5C4 virus isolated in Kambar-Shadakot has been genetically linked with Loralai and in August 2017 with Multan R4B1C1.

The established circulation of R4B5C4 in Loralai is worrisome for south Punjab and central Pakistan and so the extended circulation of R4B1C1.

Talking to this scribe Coordinator of the Emergency Operations Centre for polio eradication and Director General of Health Services Dr. Munir Ahmad said although Punjab has been able to keep the virus at bay but it is showing no signs of abating.