Pakistan’s efforts to eradicate polio have been dealt another blow, with health officials confirming two new cases of the virus in children from Sindh province. The Regional Reference Laboratory in Islamabad identified the cases in one child from Badin district and another from Thatta. This development raises the national total of polio cases for the year 2025 to 29, signaling a concerning resurgence of the disease. The cases are geographically spread, with 18 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, nine from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan.
The rise in cases comes despite ongoing vaccination efforts. A recent campaign was conducted from September 1 to 7 across 25 districts in Sindh, targeting 2.1 million children. However, the campaign faced a significant challenge: a high number of children, particularly in Karachi, were missed. Sources report that nearly 35,000 parents in Sindh have refused to vaccinate their children, with the majority of these refusals concentrated in Karachi. This stands in contrast to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where a decline in refusals was noted.
In response to the escalating situation, a new country-wide anti-polio campaign has been announced. Scheduled for October 13 to 19, this ambitious drive aims to administer polio drops to more than 45.4 million children across Pakistan. The National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) is overseeing the effort to achieve maximum coverage and curb the virus’s transmission.
The recent spike is a major setback for Pakistan, which is one of only two remaining polio-endemic countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan. After coming tantalizingly close to eradicating the crippling disease in 2021, the country reported 74 cases last year. Health authorities emphasize that polio is an incurable, paralyzing disease, and the only reliable defense is the completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under five, which provides them with critical immunity.
