505,000 Children to be Vaccinated in Four-day Anti-polio Drive in Bahawalpur
Bahawalpur District Prepares for Polio Eradication
BAHAWALPUR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - September 21, 2026) — Arrangements have been finalized for a four-day anti-polio campaign in Bahawalpur district. Commissioner Irfan Ali Kathia officially launched the drive by administering polio drops to children at the Outpatient Department of Bahawal Victoria Hospital.
Kathia emphasized, "Every child protected, Pakistan free of polio is our resolve." He highlighted the collective responsibility of eradicating polio and assured the utilization of all available resources to make Bahawalpur a polio-free district. He strictly warned against negligence or laxity during the campaign, ensuring strict monitoring of polio teams and vaccination coverage.
The meeting was informed that the anti-polio campaign in Bahawalpur would run from September 21 to 24, 2026, targeting 505,000 children. Mobile polio teams will visit households, while fixed and transit teams will operate at health centers, bus terminals, railway stations, and other key locations.
Constituted for the campaign are mobile, fixed, and transit teams, along with 402 area in-charges and monitoring officers at the union council level. Special arrangements have been made for monitoring polio teams, verifying vaccination coverage, and reaching children who may have been missed, with particular focus on high-risk areas, nomadic settlements, and children with incomplete or no polio vaccine doses.
Commissioner Kathia directed officers and polio teams to ensure vaccination through door-to-door visits and maintain effective field monitoring to meet the assigned target. He stressed that achieving complete polio eradication requires every child to receive the vaccine.
Present at the event were Assistant Commissioner Bahawalpur Iqra Mubeen, Director Health Services Dr. Syed Tanveer Shah, Medical Superintendent Bahawal Victoria Hospital Dr. Abdul Rehman, Chief Executive Officer Health Dr. Zeeshan Rauf, and other relevant officers.