PESHAWAR: A seven-day anti-polio drive started in the provincial metropolis on Friday under the supervision of district administration to inoculate 740726 children, aged below five years, in Peshawar and its adjoining areas.

In this connection, Deputy Commissioner (DC), Khalid Mahmood has chaired a meeting and the officers of district administration, the representatives of health, and other concerned departments were also attended the meeting.

Deputy Commissioner said that 740426 children would be administered polio drops during the ongoing polio drive across the district. He said that 2493 teams have been constituted that would administer polio drops to children in all localities and all security arrangements have also been made for polio teams. He said the eradication of polio virus was a national cause and called on all segments of society to support district administration and health department efforts to save children from the crippling.

The officers of district administration carried out a door-to-door campaign in different localities and persuaded parents to administer polio vaccines to their children. Similarly, an anti-polio campaign also started in district Khyber to vaccinate 210,917 for which children 924 polio teams were constituted.

Deputy Commissioner Khyber Mansoor Arshid has appealed, the reluctant parents for administering polio drops to their children to save them from permanent disability. He directed all stakeholders to make sure not a single children remain deprived of the polio vaccine. Deputy Commissioner Khyber directed officials concerned to ensure effective monitoring of the polio campaign and worked as a team to achieve the goal of polio immunization drive.