Islamabad, Jan 2 (IANS) Hyderabad region of Pakistan's Sindh has not been able to achieve polio-free status in 2025, with over 12,000 children missing vaccination during the final nationwide campaign in 2025, sparking concerns over official negligence and public resistance, local media reported.

Continuous indifference by health department officials has once again affected efforts to eliminate polio from the district, according to official sources. As many as 12,092 children aged below the age of five were left unvaccinated even after the last nationwide anti-polio campaign was conducted in 2025 amid the confirmed presence of the virus, Pakistan's leading daily The Express Tribune reported.

Health officials said that Hyderabad reported the presence of poliovirus for the 11th consecutive time in 2025. Based on environmental sewage samples collected in Pakistan, Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad, revealed that Wild Poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) was detected in Hyderabad during November, similar to several other cities across the country.

According to the report, the persistent presence of the poliovirus poses a threat to health of children and parents were asked to remain vigilant and ensure repeated doses of the polio vaccine for their children and complete immunisation schedules on time to protect them from polio and other preventable diseases.

Previously, Hyderabad achieved polio-free status due to effective administrative measures and environmental samples had revealed no trace of the virus. Over the past several years, the lack of effective anti-polio campaigns along with lack of accountability against negligent health officials and field staff has allowed the virus to regain a permanent foothold in the district.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where Wild Poliovirus remains endemic. Polio eradication efforts in Pakistan have slowed down due to challenges like security issues, vaccine hesitancy and misinformation.

Polio workers have been frequently targetted in attacks in Pakistan, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. A police constable, who was deployed for the security of the polio vaccination team, was shot dead after unidentified assailants opened fire in the Kaahi area of Nizampur in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on October 15.

Police identified the constable as Maqsood (35), a resident of Kheshgi. Police spokesperson said that the incident happened when female health workers were administering polio drops to children in a house, The Express Tribune reported. The attackers fled from the spot after the incident and the authorities launched a search operation to arrest them.

--IANS

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