ISLAMABAD: The country’s fight against polio has hit another setback, with two new cases reported from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), bringing the national total for 2025 to 23, officials confirmed on Tuesday.
The latest detections included a 16-month-old girl from Union Council Mullazai in District Tank and a 24-month-old girl from Union Council Miran Shah-3 in District North Waziristan.
The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) has confirmed two new poliovirus cases from South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – one from District Tank and the other from District North Waziristan.
The recent polio cases include a 16-month-old girl from Union Council Mullazai, District Tank, and a 24-month-old girl from Union Council Miran Shah-3, District North Waziristan.
With these detections, the total number of polio cases in Pakistan in 2025 has reached 23, including 15 cases from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, six from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan.
This year, three cases each have been reported from District Bannu and Lakki Marwat and Tank, two from North Waziristan districts; one each from Torgha, DI Khan and lower Kohistan.
In Sindh, two cases have been reported from Badin while one each case from Larkana, Kambar, Thatta and UmerKot districts, while one case was reported in District Mandi Bahauddin of Punjab and one case was reported from District Diamer of G-B.
In 2024, Pakistan has reported a total of 74 polio cases, of which, 27 in Balochistan, 23 in KP, 22 in Sindh, and one each in Punjab and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
According to health professionals, to eradicate poliovirus from the country, the federal and provincial authorities besides, polio vaccination drive should start cleaning sewerage as wild poliovirus is spreading through the sewerage.
It is crucial for communities to understand that poliovirus can re-emerge wherever immunity gaps persist. Every unvaccinated child remains vulnerable and can also contribute to the spread of the virus.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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