Karachi 11th September : Karachi, Sep 11 : Wild Poliovirus Type-1 was detected in an environmental sample taken from the sewer line in Karachi’s Landhi area in August, the Pakistan’s National Polio Laboratory at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad, confirmed, Geo News reported.Officials of the Federal Ministry of National Health Services said this was the first environmental sample that was positive from Sindh this year.
As as many as 11 positive cases of Poliovirus have been identified in Pakistan in the month of August alone, and the total amount of cases confirmed so far this year is 22.Out of the 11 cases identified in August, five originated located in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) as well as Punjab as well as Sindh has reported one instance.
The officials from the federal ministry stated that the sample of the environment that was found to be positive in Karachi was taken on the 23rd of August in the Bakhtawar village in the Landhi region of Karachi, Geo News said.
“This is the first environmental sample that has been positive of Karachi in 2022.
The last positive test of Karachi was announced in the month of May in 2021.The previous wild poliovirus outbreak from the district was recorded in June 2020.
The most recent polio vaccination campaign in the district was carried out from August 15 to 21,” an official said.
Thirteen samples of positive environmental quality in 2022 were taken from KP comprising seven samples from Bannu Three samples were taken from Peshawar Two from Swat and one from Nowshera.
Seven positive samples were taken from Punjab which includes three from Lahore and two from Rawalpindi and one from Bahawalpur and Sialkot.One positive sample has been taken from Karachi and Islamabad.
Of the 22 positive samples, one of them was gathered in April two in May one in June seven in July and 11 in August 2022, said the official and added that in 2021 the year 2021, 65 positive samples of environmental pollution were found in the country.
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