One more polio case reported in Thatta

In spite of splurging millions of rupees in September to prevent spreading polio menace in Sindh, one more polio case has been reported in Thatta district, moving the counter to 19 in the province, Business Recorder learnt on Thursday.
Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) has completed its two separate door-to-door three-day campaigns from 19th to 21st September and 26th to 29th September 2011 in all districts of province including Karachi. During the first campaign launched from 19th to 21st September 2011, in Karachi, about 2,332,269 children of up to five years' age have been administered polio drops in the various parts of metropolitan city.
About 2.5 million children have been administered OPVs during second campaign launched from September 26 to September 29, 2011, in all districts of the province, according to the report of EPI. Despite these measures, the provincial health department failed to prevent spreading of polio in Sindh and one more case has been detected in district Thatta.
Sources inside the EPI informed Business Recorder that a case has been reported in village Haji Siddiq Mumrani of Union Council Ladyoon, Taluka Shah Bandar of district Thatta where polio virus caused disability to nine-month-old girl Baby Rukhsana daughter of Ramazan.
With reporting of this case, the number of cases/children carrying Polio infection in Thatta district reached four, sources said. After Thatta, Badin district is most dangerous area where three cases of polio have been reported yet, sources added. The EPI is preparing to launch another three-day campaign as per schedule from 24th to 26th of October 2011, sources said.
During the meeting with officials of EPI, DCO Thatta has expressed dissatisfaction over the working of EPI teams who worked previously to curb this deadly disease, sources said. Sources said that Health department's focal person for Polio Campaign Dr Rasool Bux Magsi briefed DCO Thatta that 648 mobile teams have been constituted with another 33 female workers/Lady Health Workers to administer Polio vaccination/ drops to around 251,462 children being under 5 years.
He further informed that along with door to door move for vaccination, 88 fixed centres and 35 transit points have also been identified. It is pertinent to mention here that World Health Organisation (WHO) in its report stated that total 103 cases of Polio have been reported in Pakistan out of which 19 have been detected from Sindh province.