KARACHI: Hundreds of polio teams on Sunday marched across the streets and lanes of the 24 ‘sensitive’ neighbourhoods to inoculate more than 500,000 children amid tight security.
The authorities had banned pillion riding in the 24 union councils for the day with hundreds of policemen had been deputed as part of a security plan to avoid recurrence of an attack reported in January that claimed lives of three polio vaccinators.
Certain female polio workers — predominating the campaign — covered their faces because they did not want to be identified in public life because of security reasons.
It was a fourth Sunday in which these areas had been targeted for the children who had missed many previous campaigns.
Officials said a total of five Sundays had been planned for one-day drives in those localities. Another two Sundays would be spent on the areas of lesser sensitiveness and two more Sundays would see all those areas taken simultaneously.
They said no untoward incident was reported from any of the targeted areas.
The areas covered were: Gadap UC 4, 5 and 8, Gulshan UC 10, 11, 12 and 13, Baldia UC 1, 2, 3 and 4, Orangi UC 1, 2 and 13, SITE UC 7, 8 and 9, Bin Qasim UC 2, 3 and 4, Landhi UC 1 and 2, Saddar UC 9 and Gulberg UC 8.
The officials in the most volatile Gadap Town said they completely covered the three UCs.
The special campaigns with better security cover had been launched after officials warned that the current one as a difficult year for Karachi vis-à-vis incidence of polio.
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