Girl found infected with polio in Kunar

ASADABAD (Pajhwok): A three-year-old girl has been diagnosed poliovirus positive in the Ghaziabad district of eastern Kunar province, the first case surfacing in the province this year, an official said on Sunday.

Kunar public health director Dr Asadullah Fazli told Pajhwok Afghan News the infected girl was a resident of Kasi village of the district near the Pakistani border. There were seven polio cases in Kunar last year.

He said some people believed anti-polio vaccination would negatively impact their kids and thus their denial to allow polio drops to their children.

So far 19 polio cases have been recorded in Afghanistan this year.

Children numbering between 8,000 and 9,000 remained deprived of anti-polio vaccine in Kunar, Fazli said, adding his department had launched a three-day vaccination drive targeting children in Shigal, Asmar, Dangam, Narai and Ghaziabad districts.

mds/ma