Youth urged to join anti-polio efforts

By Bureau report
February 15, 2024

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa Special Secretary Health for Polio Control Abdul Basit has urged the youth to come forward to play a role in eradicating the poliovirus so that children can be saved from lifelong disability.

A health worker, escorted by a police officer, administers polio vaccine drops to a child during a vaccination campaign in Peshawar. — AFP/File
A health worker, escorted by a police officer, administers polio vaccine drops to a child during a vaccination campaign in Peshawar. — AFP/File

He expressed these views while interacting with young squash player, Khushal Riaz Khan, who met him at the Emergency Operation Centre for Polio eradication on Wednesday.The special secretary lauded Khushal Riaz Khan’s outstanding performance in the National Squash Championship and National Games 2023. Abdul Basit appreciated Khushal Riaz Khan’s efforts in the eradication of polio, especially in anti-polio vaccination campaigns to protect children from polio.

He said currently, polio had been eradicated from all over the world, except for Pakistan and Afghanistan where many children faced disability for life due to polio every year. The special secretary hoped that like Khushal Riaz Khan, other youths, especially sportsmen of national and international level, would fully cooperate with the Emergency Operation Centre in the noble cause of eradicating polio.